Faraway Dawn
by Remedi
Summary: In spite of being told that he was gone, Marian knows she has to go back for Leon. It isn't long before she realizes that more than his body was damaged that day. ::AU, StahnxLeon in later chapters::
1. Hope

**Author's Note: **Hey. This idea has been poking me for a while, so I decided to see where I could take it. Oh, and just to be safe: if you haven't played to the end of ToD, you probably shouldn't be reading this, as there will be spoilers.

I'm merging remake and original canon here, hence this being an 'AU' rather than a simple 'what if'. **Curimuch** was kind enough to provide me with lots of good remake information, so thank you. :) With that being said...

**Disclaimer: **Tales of Destiny belongs to Namco, not me.

* * *

The fear of crashing the escape pod was the only thing keeping her tears at bay.

Marian had been hesitant about flying this thing. Stahn's initial reaction to the escape pod had made her uneasy. Once she got in, she realized that there would be no disaster and that it was actually surprisingly easy for someone like her, completely machinery illiterate, to handle. The flight was still rather jerky, but she was doing the best that she could.

A sigh escaped her lips and she almost laughed. _He_ had always been one to get airsick on even the smoothest of flights; her flying would have nearly kill--she bit her lip.

_That's not even funny. _

She had a white knuckled grip on the controls and her destination couldn't be more clear. The young Phandarian king, Garr, had told her to go to Seinegald to inform the king of all that had happened... but that wasn't where she was heading.

_"Leon is dead."_

Those words... when they were said, Marian's blood turned to ice and she could have sworn that her heart stopped beating for a second.

He couldn't be.

_"But we're not sure if he's dead yet..."_

Philia tried to be encouraging, but her face had been etched with doubt. Still, that little bit of hope she'd offered was enough to make Marian take this detour.

Marian didn't really believe that Leon had survived. The factory had been destroyed by the rapids and he hadn't made it out. She knew it was nearly impossible. However, it was the word _nearly_ that was propelling her forward, even in spite of her best efforts to accept the fact that the boy who had pretty much been her _life_ over the past decade or so was gone. As long as there was a chance that he had escaped with his life, she would not allow her hope to completely fizzle out.

She wouldn't be able to rest until his body was found and confirmed dead or alive and she felt that she was the only person who could look for it. Stahn and his friends, understandably, had to move on and Hugo had been apathetic about Leon's well-being for the last sixteen years. Disgusted, Marian highly doubted that he would start caring now. She was still furious that Hugo had used her as a bargaining tool to force the boy into cooperating with him. She'd begged Leon not to worry about her, but he'd refused to let her to die.

_"Why do you think I brought this woman?" Hugo smirked and pushed a strand of his dark hair out of his face, looking sickeningly complacent. "She's only a hostage... or," he raised a questioning eyebrow, "did you forget your promise that you'd help me if I spared _this _woman's life?" He roughly jerked on Marian's arm, forcing her forward._

_"Emilio, stop it! I don't _care_ what happens to me!" It wasn't until later that she realized how much truth was in those words. She would have gladly died there if it meant Leon's freedom. _

_He shook his head firmly, his eyes narrowed with bitter determination. Marian closed her eyes, trying and failing to ignore the not-quite-healed wounds on his face. She knew there were more like that on his body, too... the other bargaining tool._

_"This is insane..." she murmured desolately, seeing absolutely no way out of this situation._

_Hugo turned on her. "A hostage should be _quiet_... or must I gag your mouth by force?" _

_"Don't you dare touch Marian!" Leon immediately jumped to the woman's defence. Hugo looked at him expectantly. The boy bowed his head. "You're right," he admitted. "I'll do anything if you save her life."_

_"Emilio..." Marian felt tears spring to her eyes. She wanted to tell him that she was expendable and that he should just leave her and run, but before she could, she heard Hugo laughing._

_"I'm glad we have an understanding." He smiled at Leon, but the smile was not a friendly one. "If you behave yourself, she won't have to die. Why couldn't you be more understanding like this from the beginning, Emilio?"_

In all honesty, Marian wasn't even one hundred percent certain of how long it had been since then. It seemed like years, mostly because the maid felt weary, as though she had aged fifteen years between the last time she saw him and now. She looked older, too; all ashen faced with bruise coloured shadows beneath her tired eyes.

Suddenly, she tensed.

"There it is," she whispered, a tremor in her voice.

_This is it... _Marian felt like there were countless anxious butterflies in her stomach and mentally cursed herself for expecting to find anything other than a corpse in the area.

When it came time to land, the only thing debated was where she would leave the pod. This was it. She didn't care how long it took; Marian vowed that she would search every last square foot of that area if she had to. It wasn't as though she had much more to lose. There was bound to be at least a trace--him, his sword, a piece of clothing,_ anything_ to provide her with some kind of closure.

_"Leon is dead."_

_"But we're not sure if he's dead yet..."_

_Soon, _Marian thought. Something inside of her chest clutched as she awkwardly prepared the pod for landing, eyes gravely fixated on the spot. _Soon, we will be sure._

* * *

**A/N: **This chapter _is _kinda short, but the rest should be longer. I just had to set the stage a little. 


	2. Hold On

The landing wasn't as rocky as Marian had feared it would be and she managed to smile about it. That smile soon faded as she slipped out of the pod and took in the scene around her.

The old Oberon factory had been located on an island near the town of Cresta. The last time Marian had been there, she remembered the island looking somewhat peaceful. It was too barren and foggy to ever be considered beautiful but, had the circumstances of her visit been better, it would have been pleasant enough.

Now, it looked like a war zone. Rock and debris from the Oberon factory littered the coastline and the polluted water. As Marian looked out over the ocean, she soon noticed something that didn't seem to belong. There was something that almost looked human on one of the rocks. She squinted through the fog, then ran to the water's edge for a closer look.

Marian's eyes widened as they confirmed that there was indeed a small, black haired boy crumpled in a pained heap atop the rock. His clothes were filthy and torn, but she still recognized him as Leon.

Shaking, she stepped into the water. She could hear the rhythm of her heart drumming through her head, its beat seeming to grow faster and more frantic with every step she took. _There's no way he's alive..._ she thought, bracing herself for the worst.

The maid was up to her waist in chilly sea water now, standing before the rock. Without hesitation, she lifted herself up onto it. Her skirt was dripping with dirty water, but she never paid it much mind as she knelt next to Leon.

His face looked ashy, marred with bruises and scrapes and the front of his shirt was covered with blood, dirt and vomit. Marian bit her lip as she gingerly touched the boy's cold cheek. It was slightly damp from the ever present fog in the air. His eyes were closed, his hair was matted and--

_Am... I dreaming?_

--his chest was slowly rising with each ragged breath he took.

Leon was _alive_. How much longer he could hold out, Marian wasn't sure. There was no time to be relieved and ecstatic; she had to get Leon back to Darilsheid as soon as she could. He sounded like he was struggling for air. Marian pressed on his chest a couple of times. A bit of water trickled out from between his lips and he made a choking noise, but he didn't wake up.

_I've got to get him home... to a doctor._

First, she knew she had to check for injuries. She brought her hands down from his chest and lightly pressed on his ribs, then examined each of his limbs in turn. His left leg was what bothered her the most. Even before she'd touched it, she could tell it was in hard shape from the way it was bent. Judging by what she could feel, it was broken in at least two places.

Marian had enough medical expertise to know better than to move someone with a severe break, but she had nothing with her to fashion a splint from. Another strangled choking sound emitted from Leon and Marian finally decided that a damaged limb was nothing compared to his life.

Gently, she pulled the unconscious Leon up into a sitting position. He immediately flopped forward onto her shoulder. Holding him up against her chest, she looked around, picking out where she'd left the escape pod. With a bit of an awkward struggle, she managed to get Leon onto her back, trying to be mindful of his leg.

Fortunately, being smaller than most boys his age, Leon was light--he and Marian were actually right around the same height and weight. Regardless, physical strength wasn't Marian's best attribute, so dragging the limp swordsman on her back through the water to the escape pod took a lot out of her. By the end of the trek, it was only her determination to get him back home that kept her from collapsing.

Once they got to the machine, Marian had to stop and catch her breath. Spending her days cooking and cleaning had obviously done nothing for her endurance.

"Emilio..." she murmured. "Please, hang in there. I promise I'll do something about those injuries as soon as we get back home." Somehow, talking to him as though he were conscious and functioning made her feel a little more optimistic.

With effort, she hoisted him into the escape pod, making sure that the broken leg was laid out straight. Leon was heavier than she'd originally thought. Her back muscles felt strained. She could already tell she was going to be sore the next day.

Marian hopped up into the pod herself, settled into the driver's seat and lifted off with one final look at Leon.

"Hold on..."

-xxx-

Darilsheid Harbour was up in arms over the escape pod landing there. Marian wasn't surprised; everyone had been on edge since the Aethersphere had appeared in the sky. Two sailors, one with shaggy blond hair and the other bald, rushed over to investigate.

"Hold it right--!" The blond squinted as he got closer. "..._Marian!?_"

Marian pressed a button and the pod's top went down. "I'm sorry to have caused such a fuss, Minze."

The other people who'd been crowding around in suspicious huddles soon realized that the pod was no threat and began slowly dispersing.

"What's goin' on here?" the other sailor questioned.

Marian shook her head. "I'll explain later... for now, I'm going to need your help." She indicated Leon, who was still unconscious on the pod's floor.

"Ain't that Leon? That kid's a damn prodigy with a sword..." Minze raised his eyebrows way up. "Never thought I'd see him like this."

"He... nearly drowned. If you want, I'll tell you more when things here are looked after," Marian promised. "Um, if it's not too much trouble, do you think you could go and try to find a doctor?"

"Yeah, that's no problem."

Marian forced a weak smile through her worry. "Thank you."

Minze smiled reassuringly and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Don't stress out too much; it'll all work out. Mandel," he turned to his friend, "I think I should stay here with her. You mind goin' to get the doctor?"

"Not at all."

Mandel hurried off and Marian's attention immediately went to Leon.

"The fact that he's breathin' is a good sign," Minze commented, peering at Leon as well. "In all my experience on the sea, people've survived nearly drownin', but once they stop breathin'..." He trailed off there, shaking his head. "So, how long would you say it's been?"

Marian thought for a moment. She'd been up on the Aethersphere with Rembrandt and it was nearly impossible to determine the passage of time there. "I don't really know," she admitted. "Um... maybe a few days."

Minze gave a low whistle. "Hoo boy. Kid's lucky to be alive."

"When I found him, he was on one of the rocks in the ocean."

"'Nother stroke of luck right there. You sure he doesn't have a rabbit's foot in one of his shoes?"

The corners of Marian's mouth turned up a little, but a wheeze from Leon soon sobered her.

"Don't worry; that's good," Minze assured her. "Gettin' the water out."

"R-right... but if he's been doing that for days now..."

"You found him in time, Marian. That's all you could do." Minze looked out toward the city. "The rest is in the doctor's hands."

-xxx-

It wasn't long before Mandel returned. The doctor he'd brought with him was a kindly looking man in his early forties.

"Thank you for taking the time to come," said Marian.

"Mandel here told me everything. Now, where is Leon?"

Mandel directed him to the escape pod.

The grave expression on the doctor's face as he examined Leon made the nervous butterflies in Marian's stomach even worse. "Mm hm..." he kept saying without a single note in his voice to hint at what he thought of Leon's condition. The two sailors hung around, just in case their assistance was required. They both seemed a bit on edge as well.

After what felt like an eternity to Marian, but was actually less than five minutes, the doctor drew back.

"Well?" Marian asked anxiously.

"He was found in the nick of time," the doctor concluded.

Minze cracked a smile and Mandel let out a sigh of relief.

"Oh..." Marian closed her eyes. "Thank Atamoni..."

"Yes," the doctor continued. "With proper care, he'll survive." He furrowed his brow. "His left leg troubles me, though. I'm not sure it'll ever reach a full recovery with the shape it's in."

"I'm sorry." Marian bowed her head. "I should have splinted it, but I had nothing to make one with at the time..."

The doctor shook his head dismissively. "You did your best. Getting him here should have been top priority, anyway. I'm sure he'll be mobile in time, though he may require a walking aid."

Marian nodded. "Thank you."

"You're very welcome, my dear." The doctor looked around. "Now, we should probably get him home." He addressed the sailors. "We'll let you transport him, but first I want to splint his leg so it doesn't sustain any further damage."

"No problem," replied Minze. Mandel nodded his agreement.

"Miss Marian, I'm going to ask you to go to my office--you know where it is, right?"

Marian nodded.

"Go there and get me one of the long pieces of wood and a long strip of bandaging," he instructed. "You'll find both in the storage closet near the potted plant."

"Right."

-xxx-

Once Marian had brought him the supplies he'd asked for, the doctor had worked quite quickly at splinting Leon's leg. He'd then instructed Minze and Mandel to _carefully_ move Leon to Hugo's mansion so he could take a better look. Under any other circumstance, he'd explained to Marian, he would probably have taken Leon into his office, but he'd rather not move him more than necessary.

While the doctor was at the office getting what he needed to examine Leon, Marian had told Minze and Mandel the condensed version of what happened. Stahn and his friends hadn't been mentioned by name, nor had she given away Hugo's plot in its disturbing entirety. Whether or not they completely believed her was debatable, but they'd seemed satisfied enough with what she'd revealed to them.

They'd left shortly after, and the doctor followed suit after he finished, so now Marian sat bedside, her full attention on Leon. His breathing still sounded strange to her, but the doctor had explained that his system was going to need time to completely recover from the effects of water inhalation. In spite of that, she was more at ease than she had been for while. So long as he was properly looked after, Leon's chances of survival were decidedly high.

She'd removed his sword and its sheathe from his back before laying him down in his bed. Both items appeared to be badly damaged. She would have preferred to change him out of those dirty clothes too, but decided against doing so for fear of aggravating his injuries. That would have to wait until he was conscious and able to cooperate with her.

Marian gave a little half smile and touched Leon's hair. It was coarse and stringy from the salt water and definitely needed washing.

She sighed, fingers absently fiddling with the tangles, trying in vain to undo them. When Marian had been hired by Hugo years ago, she'd known that his household was not a conventional one, but never in her wildest dreams had she imagined anything like this. The man was hell-bent on creating a new world and was willing to use even his own flesh and blood as a tool to do so.

Then again, Marian reminded herself, neither him nor Leon had ever seemed to think of the other as 'son' or 'father'. Having come from a warm, close knit family, the distance between the two of them had bothered her during her first few months in the mansion. She'd kept her mouth shut, though; it wasn't her place to say anything.

"Don't worry, Emilio," she spoke out loud. The silent room was giving her too much of an opportunity to think about things that would be better left alone. "Stahn and the others will stop Hugo. I have faith in them..." she trailed off as she looked back down at him, a strange mixture of relief and anxiety flooding her.

His eyes were open.


	3. Consumed

"Are you awake...?"

Uncomprehending eyes stared back at her. Marian gingerly touched the side of Leon's bruised face. The doctor had told her, depending on how long he'd been comatose, that he may not be responsive immediately upon waking. Marian hadn't even expected that he would be awake so soon.

He relaxed a bit at her touch, and his eyelids dropped again. Marian, though admittedly disappointed, wasn't surprised. The fact that he had even had a response that small to her hand against his face was enough to put her mind at ease for the time being.

Over the next couple of hours, Leon continued to drift in and out. He never spoke and he usually only opened his eyes for a minute or two at a time, but Marian was relieved to see him awake at all. He'd been sick once, but Marian had just held his head over the bucket the doctor had recommended keeping nearby.

Leon's eyes were open again. This time, however, he seemed a bit more alert.

"Emilio?"

"Hm...?" he asked weakly, knitting his brow in puzzlement. His breathing still sounded quite wheezy. Several seconds passed as he studied the maid who was now anxiously watching him. "...Marian...?"

She beamed and leaned over to pull him into a gentle embrace. "Oh, Emilio..." she said, her voice shaking with tears of relief. "Thank goodness..." Leon, still not seeming fully aware of what was going on, didn't lean into the hug, but he didn't resist her either. She let him go and he stared at her in bewilderment.

"I..." he looked around. "Where is... where's Stahn? And the others?"

_He's still not completely with it... _Marian noted. Not wanting to burden him with the world's current state, which would probably be over his head at this point anyway, she said, "I'm sorry, but I don't know where they are."

Leon blinked. "Oh."

Marian pulled the bedsheets down and eyed Leon's torn, filthy clothes. Now that he was sort of awake, she really wanted to get him out of them. "Do you want to change into something more comfortable?"

"Um... okay," Leon murmured.

Marian went over to the dresser and opened the top drawer. It didn't take her long to unearth a thin, white nightshirt. Leon was just a little feverish, so Marian thought that he should wear something light.

He was alert enough to groggily cooperate as she helped him out of his clothes and into the nightshirt. The doctor had already had to cut the legs of his tights off to wrap his broken leg (removing them, he'd explained, would probably jostle it too much), something Leon wouldn't be best pleased with later on, but also something that had to be done.

Once Leon was comfortably changed, Marian eased him back down and pulled the covers back up over him.

"How are you feeling?" she asked him. "Are you hungry? Thirsty?"

Leon just nodded his head, though it was hard to tell what, exactly, he was nodding in response to. He would need food and water regardless, so Marian stood up. "I'll go see what can I find. You don't mind me leaving for a few minutes, right?"

"Mm..."

She started toward the door. "I'll be right back."

She heard Leon saying something and stopped for a second. Upon realizing it wasn't directed toward her, she left for the kitchen.

-xxx-

"Chal?"

No answer.

"Chaltier?"

Again, Leon received no response from the Swordian. In his semi-coherent state, he wasn't yet aware of the heavy damage Chaltier had sustained back in the cave.

"Chaltier, where are you?" Leon tried to roll over on his side with a groan. His body, which had been aching pretty badly to begin with, sharply protested to even as simple a movement as adjusting himself. That sharp pain violently jerked him back into his present reality. The cave, the flood... "Are you okay?"

He blinked the last bit of sleep out of his eyes and frantically looked around the room. Finally, he spotted the sword on the night stand.

Chaltier's curved blade was slightly bent out of shape and a bit of rust had started to set in. Several scratches added to the taint of the once polished silver. Leon was only mildly distressed by those details; the deep crack in Chaltier's core crystal was what commanded his shocked attention.

Chaltier couldn't be dead. He'd always been there. Leon couldn't even remember life without him around. "Chaltier," he managed shakily, "this isn't funny..."

When Chaltier failed to respond this time, Leon became aware that he was right; there was _nothing _funny about Chaltier's current state and when that realization washed over him, he didn't even try to keep the tears at bay. It wasn't as though he had any pride left, no reason to fake a brave face.

Leon couldn't recall a single time he'd felt this pathetic. No matter how hard things got in the past, he would still have his reputation to fall back on. When the name 'Leon Magnus' came up, it was always swarmed with marveled whispers about his impressive swordsmanship and how he was in a position to become the youngest general Seinegald had ever seen. Even when he was being beaten down, forced to aid Hugo's wretched cause, he stayed calm by reminding himself that he and Chaltier could easily take them out and that this was all for Marian's sake.

_Marian. _

Leon sniffled. At least she was still alive... and still loved him. He knew that, if he even saw them again, he wouldn't be able to face Stahn and the others. It sickened him just to think about the wounded look on Stahn's face when they had to fight, nearly made him physically ill to think that Stahn had been willing to forgive him.

A short sob escaped his lips. He didn't deserve Stahn's forgiveness. He hadn't had the courage to stand up for what he thought was right in time and because of that, everyone he'd ever cared about had suffered. Chaltier, Marian, Stahn and the others...

_Damn it... fate's never kind. Death looks merciful right now._

He could hear Marian's shoes clicking down the hall, toward his door. He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, but it was still painfully obvious that he'd been crying. It was all he could do to suppress the sobs.

The door opened and Marian came in with a steaming bowl of soup and a glass of fresh water.

"Here, this should perk you up--" she began as she came toward the bed. Upon looking at him, her face fell. "Oh..." She carefully set the dishes on the nightstand. "What's wrong?"

Leon just shook his head, trying to regain his composure and only succeeding in making himself more upset. He hated to be seen like this. Marian, knowing this, didn't press the issue and instead smiled reassuringly and stroked his hair until he was able to calm down. His voice was still trembling a bit when he thanked her.

"Everything will be all right. Just give it some time," she assured him. She helped ease him into something of a sitting position, braced up against the pillows, and handed him the bowl of soup. It felt warm in his hands. "Try eating some of this; you'll feel a lot better."

Leon's stomach was knotted tightly by his grievous discovery, but he managed to eat three spoonfuls of soup, enough to keep Marian from worrying too much. He knew the soup was good, but right now he couldn't even taste it. After taking a long drink of water, he let Marian help him lay down again.

"If you need anything, don't hesitate to tell me," she said.

Leon nodded, suddenly feeling very tired. He couldn't tell whether or not he was actually sleepy or just wanted to escape reality for a while. Either way, he was asleep within five minutes.

-xxx-

_Leon was laying in bed aboard the Draconis, trying as hard as he could to keep the last thing he'd eaten in his stomach. _

_**"I must say..." **__came Chaltier's voice, __**"I don't envy you at all."**_

_"You were once human," Leon grumbled in reply. _

_**"I can't say that I've ever experienced motion sickness..." **_

_"Hmph."_

_**"No, wait. I'm lying. It wasn't airsickness, though. I was on the water."**_

_Leon listened, focused intently on the Swordian (who, for whatever reason, was floating above him now). _

_**"Yes, on the water. I didn't think I was going to survive." **_

_Suddenly, Chaltier's core crystal started to disintegrate, the powder like substance falling onto Leon's bedsheets. Horrified, he tried to sweep it off onto the floor, but it was stuck tight._

_"No... Chaltier...!"_

_He saw the reflection of his own terrified face in the sheen of Chaltier's blade as the sword began to fade away. _

_**"And you know what? I was right."**_

_"Chaltier!" _

Leon's eyes flew open. A cold sweat soaked his body and clothing and he was panting heavily. "Chal..."

It took his eyes a minute to adjust to the darkness but when he did, he realized that he was in his room in Hugo's mansion and that he'd just been dreaming. Regardless, he still had a horrible, sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. The truth remained; Chaltier hadn't survived.

Last he remembered, evening was just starting to make way for night. Now, the sky was completely black. Marian must have gone to her room to sleep. Leon hadn't thought that many hours had passed between him falling asleep and waking up... or, as the case happened to be, being pulled from sleep by an eerie dream.

Now that he was awake, he noticed how uncomfortable and stiff he felt after laying in the same position for hours on end. His chest felt really tight and sore. He wanted to roll onto his side, but his injuries prevented that.

Leon was purposely focusing on trivial matters such as his sleeping position to try and push Chaltier out of his mind. Every time he thought about his late companion, he felt that much worse and falling back to sleep felt that much more impossible.

He soon discovered that the Swordian was not easy to dismiss from his thoughts. The two had been through a fair deal together. No matter what Leon tried to think of to distract himself, he could always somehow associate it with Chaltier. The tears were flowing again, silently this time. Leon didn't bother to wipe them away and simply wondered how much longer it was until sunrise.

-xxx-

Leon did eventually manage doze back off into a fitful sleep. The soft sound of the bedroom door opening was enough to jar him from it. He peered up, his eyes still a little swollen from crying himself to sleep.

"Oh... I'm sorry." Marian stepped in, closing the door behind her. "Did I wake you?"

"It's all right." Leon was grateful for her company, something to occupy his attention.

"Are you feeling any better today?" she asked, sitting on the edge of the bed and putting the back of her hand to his forehead, then to each of his cheeks.

Leon attempted to shrug. "Kind of..."

"Your fever seems to have gone down a bit," Marian noted. Leon nodded, forcing a little bit of a smile. Marian smiled back. "Do you have an appetite today?" she asked hopefully. "If you're going to regain your strength, you'll need nutrients."

"I'll try." In truth, Leon's stomach still felt strange, but at least today he could almost feel the hunger.

She smiled again. "I'll be right back."

Leon watched her leave and for the first time in a long time, he felt a little optimistic. Chaltier was still weighing darkly on his mind, a heaviness he couldn't yet escape, but there was a bit of light beneath it somewhere and, in time, it would shine through.


	4. Uncertainties

Over the past week, Leon had been recovering at a steady pace. The doctor had been coming in to check on him every few days. Last time the doctor had come, he'd still thought that Leon's leg still wasn't ready to be walked on a lot. He was only supposed to walk if he absolutely had to and even then, he needed the aid of a crutch and sometimes even Marian to get around. That leg was proving to be in as bad of shape as the doctor had initially thought.

Being bed ridden all day was really becoming a drag. Aside from his leg and the occasional coughing spell, he was feeling much better. Falling into a deep sleep was nearly impossible, since spending his days in bed didn't exactly offer him a chance to exhaust himself. Laying awake in the dark and lonely silence of his room gave him too much time to think. His thoughts at that time of night were rarely pleasant, and always seemed to focus on Chaltier, Stahn and his friends, or Hugo.

In the past when he'd had trouble sleeping, Chaltier had always been there to talk to. Now, all Leon could do was count the hours until dawn, drifting in and out of vague and disturbing dreams plagued by familiar faces and voices.

It had been nearly a month since he'd last seen the others and he didn't even try to deny it, to lie to himself. He _missed_ them. They actually treated him like a human being, much unlike the shady group he had to live around for years and was eventually forced to join.

He missed Stahn in particular. While he'd never been quite as forward with it as the other, he couldn't deny that he and the blond became good friends in the time they spent together.

He sighed and shifted a little bit, the internal debate about whether or not he'd ever want to see Stahn again raging heavily tonight.

There was a part of him that wanted nothing more than to see Stahn and give apologies and explanations until his throat was raw, until he was certain that Stahn had absolved him everything. Certainly the other had appeared very willing to forgive Leon back in the cave, but Leon wanted him to know how strongly he meant it.

The other part of him knew just how difficult it would be to bring himself to do that. The last time they'd spoken, in that damned cave, had been hard enough on both of them.

Frustrated, he stared up at the ceiling, eyes not wanting to stay closed for more than a blink.

It was going to be a long night.

-xxx-

_"Leon, wait for me!" _

_Leon looked over his shoulder to see Philia coming up behind him. She was tugging at the end of one of her thick braids, the anxiety in her eyes clear even behind her spectacles. He stopped and looked at her questioningly._

_"I can't seem to find Stahn anywhere... have you seen him today?"_

_Leon tried to remember, but for some reason, the day's earlier events were foggy. "I don't think so..." he shook his head._

_"I have something important I need to ask him. Could you help me look?"_

_Leon nodded, not having anything better to do on this boat. _

_"Great! I'll go this way. You check the cargo room." With that, the young priestess took off in the same direction she'd came. Leon walked to the cargo room and stuck his head inside._

_"Stahn, are you in here?"_

_He suddenly heard Rutee's voice echoing down the hall, also yelling the blond's name. _

_Suddenly worried, Leon left the cargo room and began a top to bottom search of the ship._

_**"Bocchan."**_

_"What is it, Chal?" _

_**"Stahn fell overboard."**_

Leon woke up then, his chest heaving. After getting his bearings about him, he mentally consoled himself back to reality. _Stahn didn't fall off a boat... that couldn't have happened anyway, because Chal..._

_Goddamn it._

"Even when I do fall asleep, these dreams..." he muttered into his pillow, letting the sentence trail off.

To his dismay, the sky was still very dark.

-xxx-

Marian added just a pinch more cinnamon to the warm cereal she was preparing for Leon. The poor boy still hadn't been cleared to stand up with a crutch, let alone walk around. Marian couldn't help but fret that all of the accidental jostling she'd done upon finding him had added to the severity of the break. She knew it had, but she hadn't expected such careful movement to have such a drastic effect.

She left the kitchen, saying good bye to the kitchen maids on her way out, and headed up the stairs.

The maid hesitated in front of Leon's door. It was still pretty early, no later than eight. If he was still asleep, the last thing she wanted to do was wake him. She knew that sleep hadn't been coming easily to him lately. They'd tried everything from warm milk to the desperation act of counting sheep to remedy that, but those things did him little good.

Marian shifted the bowl to one hand and lightly rapped on the door. Leon, in a voice that sounded alert enough to imply that she hadn't woken him, invited her in. Marian let herself in and gave Leon a warm smile. He looked like he needed it.

"Is the doctor supposed to come today?" Leon propped himself up against his pillows.

"Tomorrow."

Leon's face fell. Marian walked over to the bed and touched his hair sympathetically, then handed him the bowl. He thanked her and ate silently for a few minutes, until Marian asked him, "How did you sleep?"

The disgruntled sigh Leon heaved in response answered her question.

"Don't worry," she assured him. "I'm sure that the doctor will notice an improvement tomorrow."

Marian displayed that optimism every day, and by now she knew that Leon's discouragement probably outweighed it by a good margin. Still, he nodded his head and offered her a small half smile.

"Maybe."

He didn't sound convinced.

-xxx-

A group of eight people had just arrived in Darilsheid. Most of the townsfolk eyed them cautiously before recognizing the seeming leader, a young man with long, wild blond hair, as Stahn Aileron. It was common knowledge that he and his friends were on good terms with the king, so distrustful glances their way were kept to a minimum.

The usually bustling city of Darilsheid seemed muted today. Stahn knew that it had been like this since the Aethersphere had appeared. Walking in the streets, he could feel anxious and negative energy all around him.

"Stahn?"

Stahn glanced at Philia to his left. "Yeah?"

"Don't you think we should pay Marian a visit?" she asked, her brow creased in concern. "I didn't really like the note we parted on."

"That's a good idea," Stahn agreed.

"We're on a rather tight schedule..." Garr tried to say, but he was cut off.

"The only thing that's tight right now is your ass." Karyl snorted. "C'mon, man. Schedules are made to deviate from--ow!" He yelped as he felt a sharp kick to his shin and shot a glance over his shoulder to see Chelsea with her hands on her hips.

"_I'm _the only one allowed to say those kinds of things about Garr!" she protested. Karyl groaned in pain and at the same time, a sigh could be heard from the current topic of conversation.

"So... uh... I guess we're going to the mansion?" Stahn scratched his head.

"It would be a kind gesture," said Philia. Stahn nodded.

"That's so like you." He beamed at her, then turned to his right, where Rutee was being unusually quiet. "Something wrong?"

"...Oh, no. It's nothing," Rutee said quickly.

"I'm sure Marian knows you didn't mean to be so hard on her back there," Stahn assured her, reaching over and giving her shoulder a friendly squeeze.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." A teasing grin came over Rutee's features. "That was a pansy-ass squeeze, country boy." Dymlos laughed in his sheathe.

Stahn relaxed. _That _sounded more like her. Then he frowned, remembering that he'd been insulted. "It wasn't like I was putting anything into it!" he argued.

"Excuses!"

"I _would_ try to prove you otherwise--"

"--but you don't want to harm a lady, right?" Rutee finished for him. "_Such_ a gentleman."

"Oh, you two." Mary giggled.

The mood of the group soon sobered as they came up to the large mansion.

"Should I knock...?" Stahn wondered. "Or should we just go right in?" Without Leon in the group, it would feel awkward barging in.

Leon... Stahn felt his heart lurch at the thought of his friend, left to be buried alive in seawater and debris. A day didn't go by that the blond didn't think of him, think of how different things could have been.

Chelsea marvelled at the size of the house. "Would they even hear a knock in there?" she asked, her voice bringing Stahn back to reality.

"Well, here it goes." Stahn lifted his hand and banged on the door five times in succession. Just as he was about to open the door and let himself in, a young maid came and answered.

"Yes? Do you have business here?" she tilted her head, studying Stahn and the others for a moment. "Oh... you're Master Leon's friends. Come on in; I'm sure he'll be happy to see you!"

Stahn's jaw slackened and he gaped at the maid. "Wh-what did you just say...?" Surely he couldn't have heard her right.

"He's been bed ridden for a week now. Some company would do him good. I'll go tell him that you're here!" Before Stahn could ask her any more questions, the maid hurried upstairs.

Stahn didn't go inside right away and instead turned to the others to see their reactions. He couldn't find any words to describe his shock.

_Leon's... alive! _As the realization struck him, a wide smile spread across his face. _He's really alive... I can't believe it! _

"Wow," he finally managed.

"Oh, I _knew_ there was a chance!" Philia bowed her head. "Thank you, Atamoni..."

"The kid's got nine lives. We should've known someone like him wouldn't be easy to get rid of." In spite of the slight sarcasm in Rutee's words, there was no hiding the happiness in her voice. Mary squeaked and, in a sudden paroxysm of joy, threw her arms around Rutee. "Yes, you're happy too," the Lens hunter laughed, gently pushing the redhead off of her.

**"Then... does this mean...?"** Dymlos asked, anxiety filling his voice.

**"We'll soon find out," **Atwight replied tersely.

_"See?" _Karyl prodded Garr with the stalk of his guitar. "There was a reason for this detour."

"Indeed."

"Come on! I wanna see Leon!" Chelsea darted by Stahn and into the mansion. Stahn and the others followed, all smiles now.

_But what if Leon doesn't want to see us?_

That sudden thought curbed Stahn's enthusiasm somewhat. Even though Leon somehow managed to survive, their last encounter had still had a sense of finality about it. He bit his lip. There was no way to determine how Leon would react to them. He glanced around, at his teammates. None of them seemed to share his concerns, so Stahn relaxed a little and followed them up the stairs.

As he got closer to Leon's room, his heart felt like it wanted to burst out of his chest.

_This is such an irrational fear, _he thought, annoyed with himself for ruining his elation with such thoughts. _Of course Leon will be happy to see us! We're his friends!_

"I-I'm sorry." The maid that had invited them in stopped them in front of Leon's room. "While I'm sure you have no ill intentions toward Marian or Master Leon, I'm going to have to ask you to leave your weapons out here."

"I understand." Stahn nodded. "With the way things are these days, you can never be too careful." Obediently, he set Dymlos down. The others followed suit.

"Thank you." The maid smiled and permitted them entry, closing the door behind them.

-xxx-

**"We all saw Chaltier in there, didn't we?" **Dymlos spoke up as soon as the door was closed and he was certain that none of the Swordian masters inside would be privy to the conversation. **"On the nightstand?"**

The other Swordians murmured in agreement.

**"It seems kind of strange," **he noted, **"how he didn't say anything."**

**"This means--" **Atwight gasped.

**"Not saying anything to us would be uncharacteristic of Chaltier," **Igtenos pointed out sullenly.

**"No..." **

**"Now, now. This is what we'd assumed from the beginning, that Chaltier was no longer with us." **Despite trying to be logical and reasonable, there was an unmistakable note of sorrow behind Clemente's words.

**"That was **_**before**_** we'd found out that Leon had survived!" **Dymlos cut in. **"Damn**__**it!"**

**"Dymlos..." **Atwight tried to calm him.

**"Dymlos, please... calm yourself. Getting upset is not going to do anything for Chaltier."**

Dymlos was silent for a couple of seconds. **"Hey, wait."**

**"Hm?" **

**"Can't we repair Chaltier? Like we did with Igtenos?"**

The aforementioned wind Swordian perked up. **"I never even thought of that..." **he mused, considering the possibility.

**"What do you think of that, Clemente?" **Atwight asked, sounding hopeful.

**"I..." **Clemente paused, thinking. **"...am uncertain."**

**"Why?"** Dymlos asked with a frown in his voice. **"Igtenos was fixed without a hitch."**

**"Yes, but the damage Igtenos sustained appeared less severe," **explained Clemente.

**"Are you sure?"**

**"No... I'm not. It's not impossible, but I wouldn't get my hopes up. Igtenos?"**

**"It seems unlikely to me... from what I managed to see, Chaltier's core crystal was deeply cracked. I'm afraid he may be beyond repair." **Dymlos could almost envision Igtenos shaking his head as he spoke.

Dymlos wasn't ready to give up that easily. **"It wouldn't hurt to try," **he protested.

**"Why? So we can fail and feel this pain all over again?" **Igtenos shot back. He lowered his voice before continuing. **"I feel that it would be a bad idea simply because the probability of success is so low."**

**"How the hell do you know this!?" **Dymlos could feel his temper growing out of check. He just felt so helpless and useless to Chaltier, and Igtenos was really beginning to irritate him. **"For all we know, Chal may be fixable!"**

To his further annoyance, Igtenos answered calmly. **"How do I know? Admittedly, I'm not one hundred percent certain, but from what I saw, I can reasonably conclude--"**

Dymlos cut him off. **"Bullshit," **he raged. **"You don't know anything!"**

That set Igtenos off. **"I'll have you know--!"**

**"That's ENOUGH, you two!" **Clemente scolded. **"This bickering accomplishes nothing!"**

**"Yes, I agree with Clemente." **Atwight turned her attention to Dymlos. **"Dymlos... you're going on emotion. It's a kind thought and your desire to fix Chaltier is very admirable, but Igtenos is well versed in this field. As grim as it may sound," **Atwight sounded to be on the verge of crying,** "he's probably right."**

Dymlos knew that the others were right, but it absolutely killed him to be unable to do anything for his fallen comrade. **"...sorry, Atwight..." **he mumbled after a moment.

**"I'm not the one you need to apologize to."**

Dymlos sighed. **"Igtenos..."**

**"No. I should have been more tactful myself." **It seemed that the words of Atwight and Clemente had humbled Igtenos as well.

**"Dymlos, we all feel the same, but it would be harder on all of us if we set out on a mission that was doomed to fail from the beginning," **Clemente reasoned. **"And not just on us, but on our masters as well... Leon in particular."**

**"Yeah... I know..." **

**"I guess we just have to accept it." **Atwight's voice shook more with every word.

**"Atwight?" **Dymlos asked, concerned. **"Are you okay?"**

**"I will be," **she sighed. **"I will be."**


	5. Mending Hearts

As the eight of them came through his bedroom door, Leon couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. The maid had told him that someone was here to visit, but he didn't think it would be them. They all looked relieved and joyous, albeit understandably confused. Not one of them regarded him with the critical, distrusting eyes his nightmares were made of.

They exchanged greetings and then Chelsea threw her arms around him and squeezed tightly, making Leon wince. Though not in the severe pain he'd been in upon being found, some of his injuries were still a bit tender. Mercifully, the girl withdrew. "Glad to see you!"

"I swear that you must have nine lives," said Rutee, shaking her head. "How the hell did you manage to survive _that_?"

"Very impressive." Khang nodded.

Everyone else seemed to share Rutee's curiousity. Leon glanced about at the faces of his former teammates, a fleeting question of why Stahn was being so quiet forming itself in his mind and then making way for recollection.

A lot of what happened as the cave started to flood and cave in was foggy in Leon's mind, and most of the aftermath was completely blank. "I hardly know how myself," he admitted, furrowing his brow as he tried to think. "All I really remember is grabbing something and holding on."

It had been instinct alone that led him to grab a piece of debris to go along with the current rather than be swept up in it. Had Chaltier still been talking to him then? He couldn't remember and doubted he would have even noticed.

"Lucky break." Karyl gave a low whistle.

Stahn still said nothing and Leon was a little concerned. The blond didn't seem angry; on the contrary, he was obviously very happy to see Leon. He just seemed strangely shy.

Philia was the first to notice Chaltier. She paled. "Is he...?"

Leon simply nodded. That wound was still fresh and he'd prefer to leave it alone.

"I'm so sorry," she said sadly.

The other Swordian masters grew solemn while the rest of the group appeared a little confused. After travelling with the Swordian masters, they were beginning to understand the bonds they had with the Swordians, but at the same time, it was something that would always be beyond their comprehension.

The fact that they were there proved to be a good thing for lightening the mood, though. The direction of conversation soon shifted when Mary asked Leon why he was still in bed; she thought that he was doing well.

He scowled. "Somehow, I broke my leg and the doctor doesn't think I'm ready to be on it just yet."

Rutee raised an eyebrow. "_Somehow_ you broke your leg?"

Leon closed his eyes and sighed. It didn't seem as though he and Rutee were going to get along any better than they did before. Not that he'd expected or even hoped otherwise. "Obviously," he rolled his eyes, "I broke it getting out of the cave, but I don't remember when it actually happened."

Judging by how badly it was broken and how it still hurt more than he was willing to admit (especially if he ever wanted to leave that pillow and blanket prison), Leon was glad he couldn't remember getting the injury.

He was also glad to be back in the company of his friends, and all the more so that he could actually think of them as such without cringing and questioning. Even if Stahn did seem a little out of sorts.

On second thought, that was a bit troubling.

-xxx-

Since the tension had exploded and subsequently blown over, a mood of melancholy hung over the Swordians. No one felt much like saying anything. Atwight was especially gloomy. Dymlos wanted to comfort her, but couldn't find the words.

Chaltier had always been attached to her and she to him. The first time she'd thought him dead had been hard enough, but after hearing that Leon was alive, she'd gotten her hopes up. They all had.

That was their first mistake.

At least Leon had survived so Stahn could cheer up. Dymlos didn't like it when Stahn was depressed. In the time he'd known the blond, he'd noticed that getting him down wasn't easy and he usually rebounded fairly quickly.

Maybe it disturbed him so much because Atwight wasn't normally depressive either. While she didn't have Stahn's optimistic, generally upbeat demeanor, she was a level headed voice of reason. Like Stahn, when she was depressed, it was usually something serious.

Except Dymlos highly doubted that there would be any big revelation to make her feel better.

**"...Hey. He wouldn't want to see you like this. Try and cheer up, okay?" **Dymlos said with an encouraging smile in his voice.

**"...Thank you, Dymlos."**

-xxx-

Stahn had been apprehensive upon entering Leon's room and was surprised to see such a genuine smile on his friend's face upon seeing his former comrades. He was still a little worried, wondering if things would ever go back to the way they were.

He was hearing the conversation, but he wasn't really listening. It didn't feel the same as it had before, as though there was some kind of barrier between them and Leon, something unspoken that needed to be resolved.

"Stahn."

The sound of Garr saying his name brought Stahn back. "Yeah? What is it?"

"Should we be on our way?"

"What!?" Chelsea protested from where she sat. She pouted. "Already?"

"We came to Darilsheid to replenish our supplies," the silver haired king said, looking apologetically at Leon, who nodded his head.

"You know what I'd say if I were still travelling with you."

Stahn couldn't help but chuckle. Leon would probably agree with Garr, except the opinion would be voiced in a less than polite manner and possibly enforced with a few volts of electricity, depending on his mood.

"Maybe we'll come back later?" Chelsea said hopefully.

"Perhaps we will." Garr nodded. "If Leon hasn't tired of us."

"After being stuck in bed like this for a week, even you lot are welcome company," said Leon. Stahn knew that was just his way of saying that he was glad to see them and they were more than welcome to pay a return visit.

They exchanged their good-byes and started on their way. Once they'd reclaimed their weapons at the door, Stahn froze. He wasn't yet ready to leave. There was something he really wanted to talk to Leon about. It had been on the tip of his tongue the whole time he was in Leon's room, but he'd decided to save it; it would be an awkward discussion to have in front of so many people. He swallowed.

"Hey, Garr."

Garr looked over his shoulder. "Is something troubling you?" he asked, clearly having noted how silent Stahn had been throughout the visit.

"Not really. There's just something I need to ask Leon. Um, I'm going to stay here for just a little while longer. I'll meet up with the rest of you later, okay?"

Garr nodded. Chelsea looked eager. "Hey, is it okay if I stay too?"

Philia, too, had noticed Stahn's odd behaviour in Leon's room. She swiftly turned to Chelsea. "I think you should come with us," she said cheerfully. "I like to have your input on what kind of food to buy."

"But... oh, okay." Philia turned to smile at Stahn as the group walked away. "Well, we're gonna need lots of strawberries this time..." Chelsea's voice faded as the group made their way downstairs and were soon out of sight.

"Sorry, Dymlos, but I'm going to have to leave you out here again."

**"Alone? Can't you sneak me in?"**

"You know I'd bring you in if I could, but I was already told to leave you by the door."

**"Yeah, I should know you by now." **Dymlos sighed as Stahn set him back down on the floor.

"I won't be too long," Stahn promised before disappearing back into Leon's room.

-xxx-

"Mar--?" Leon looked up as he heard the door open. "Oh, Stahn. It's you."

"Yeah." Stahn frowned. "Where is Marian today, anyway?"

"She left to go shopping. Your friends will probably run into her. So, what brings you back here?" Leon tried to prop himself up.

"Hey, do you need any help?" Stahn asked.

"I'm not completely helpless." He managed to find a comfortable position. "You know that I've been like this for a week now, right?" Leon shifted just a little bit more before eyeing Stahn quizzically. "And you didn't answer the question."

The blond drew in a breath. "Leon," he lowered his voice as well as his gaze, focusing on a loose thread on the bedspread instead, "why were you so willing to die for us?"

The question came out, blunt and forward. Stahn had been dying to have it answered since the cave. Dodging around it, he knew, would accomplish nothing.

Leon stared hard at him. He opened his mouth, but the apologies and explanations he'd been thinking up and perfecting for days wouldn't come out. They ran together in his head and caught in his throat. He let out a frustrated noise; he was never one to be at such a complete loss for words.

Stahn watched the struggle Leon was having formulating an answer silently for several moments. Finally, he murmured, "I'm sorry... maybe this wasn't the best time to ask you that. It was stupid of me--"

"Stop that." Leon cut him off firmly. "Stop apologizing. If anyone here should be apologizing, it's me."

Stahn peered at him.

"I was hoping that sacrificing myself for your cause would be enough to make up for everything." He avoided Stahn's gaze. "I never wanted to betray you guys." His voice was beginning to shake. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Leon continued. "My intentions were better than that... but in the end, they meant nothing." The corners of Leon's mouth turned up in a rueful smile. "When it came down to it..." he trailed off, hanging his head. His bangs obscured his face, hiding his glistening eyes from Stahn.

"Leon..." Stahn reached out to console him. Leon shrank away from his touch.

"Hugo's going to come back here, you know... and as much as it disgusts me, I'll have little choice but to side with him." Leon sighed. "If I were you, I wouldn't get too attached..."

Stahn shook his head. "We're gonna stop Hugo before that happens," he insisted. "That's what I promised Ilene, and that's what I'm promising you."

"Ilene...?"

"...is dead," Stahn confirmed sadly. Leon bit his lower lip.

Stahn's sadness soon made way for a determined frown. "That just gives me all the more reason to stop Hugo," he said decisively.

Leon lifted his gaze, finally meeting Stahn's eyes. He slowly nodded his head.

"And it's okay," Stahn put a hand on Leon's shoulder, smiling at him. "I forgave you a long time ago. That's what you were worried about, right?"

Leon looked away, a slight flush spreading across his face. The sincerity behind Stahn's words proved to Leon how truly he meant them. "I wasn't worried," he lied. "With your stupid happy-go-lucky personality, I expected it." Stahn just laughed.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." His tone suddenly grew more serious. "Just promise me something."

Leon raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Don't do anything like that again... remember that your life is worth more than that, okay?" Stahn looked into his eyes. "At least, to me it is."

Leon's face turned a deeper shade of red. "I promise," he muttered.

"Good."

"You won't have to worry about that for a while, anyway." Leon glanced down at his leg in annoyance. "At this rate, I'll never be able to get out of this bed."

Stahn chuckled. "Nah, I'm sure the doctor will clear you eventually. He can't possibly hate Marian that much."

Leon narrowed his eyes. "What are you implying?"

Stahn shrugged innocently, which earned him a light bop on the head from Leon. He rubbed the spot with the palm of his hand. "I was _joking_." He scowled, then sighed. "You're... probably not going to be able to join us again, are you?"

Leon shook his head. "Be realistic." He paused. "If I were physically able too, I would... if that makes you feel any better." He surprised himself with how easily those words came out, but Stahn tended to have that effect on him. It was as though the events in the cave were a long forgotten dream and nothing had really changed between them.

The smile on Stahn's face showed that he was thinking the same thing.


	6. Have Faith

Stahn stiffened as he heard the bedroom door open, knowing without turning around that it was almost time for him to leave Leon and return to that hellish place known as the Aethersphere. Still, if going there meant that he could stop Hugo and put an end to his insanity, avenge Ilene, and save Leon from having any part in it, then he was more that willing to go.

"Hey, we're back!" Chelsea announced, then made a face. "But they," she thrust a finger at the others, "say we can't stay very long."

"Hey, don't go puttin' this on me," Karyl held his hands up innocently. "I didn't say anything... I wouldn't mind chilling with Leon for a while."

"Oh gods."

Stahn snickered at Leon's reaction.

"We actually have a concept of time," Rutee put in. "There's a world that kind of needs saving, you know."

Chelsea stuck her tongue out. "I know that! I was just thinking that it would be cool to chill with Leon for a while."

"Oh _gods._"

The girl tilted her head. "What?"

Stahn burst out laughing. "I think what Leon's trying to say is that one Karyl is enough."

"And sometimes too much," Leon added. Stahn just shook his head, knowing that Leon thought more highly of the bard than he cared to let on.

Garr massaged his temples with his fingertips, but said nothing. In spite of the small irritation that he obviously felt, the corners of his mouth were turned up ever so slightly. Everyone's mood had elevated since they'd discovered that Leon was still alive. Stahn knew for a fact that sometimes that everyone's excitement could be a little headache inducing... and would probably have been even more so had he been added to the mix.

"Well, since we _have_ to leave you," Chelsea reached into the shopping bag she had in her hand, "me and Philia got you this!" She produced a small box containing a strawberry shortcake. Leon's eyes lit up at the sight.

"Thank you." He accepted the box and set it on the nightstand.

Philia smiled. "It was Chelsea's idea."

"We really should be going," said Garr. "We..." the man surrendered and gave a full smile. "I'm glad to see that you're doing well."

The triumphant smirk on Leon's face faded as soon as it appeared, but Stahn still noticed it.

"See ya!"

"Get well soon."

Leon bade them good bye and good luck as they started to leave. Stahn lingered by the bed until the others had cleared out. "I don't want you to worry about anything except getting better, all right? We'll get everything under control."

"I know, Stahn." Stahn grinned, but Leon just frowned at him. "What are you standing around for?"

Concealing laughter, Stahn stuck his tongue out and ruffled Leon's soft, black hair none too gently. Leon scowled at him and gave him a light shove in the direction of the door. "Go. You're not getting anything under control by slacking in my bedroom."

Stahn finally turned and headed for the door. "I'll see you around." He looked over his shoulder and flashed his teeth in a bright smile. "And that's a promise!"

"As long as you don't mangle my hair again, I'll be looking forward to it." The boy was trying to look angry, but it just wasn't working. Stahn chuckled and left the room. As he closed the door behind him, he could have sworn that he heard Leon softly add, "Make sure you come back alive."

**"It's about time you came out!" **

Dymlos was immediately on Stahn's case as soon as his master picked him up. **"You said you were only going to be a little while. Over an hour is **_**not**_** a little while!"**

"I didn't say a little while," Stahn argued. "I said that I wouldn't be too long, and I get to decide how long is too long. Now, where did the others go?"

**"They're waiting for you outside." **

Stahn sheathed his Swordian and hurried down the stairs and out the door.

"It's about time you joined us," Rutee gave Stahn her special kind of greeting. "Now let's get this show on the road."

"Hello to you too, Rutee."

"Do you think Leon is holding up well?" Philia asked him, clearly a little concerned.

"Yeah, I do," Stahn assured her. "We've got no choice but to succeed in taking Hugo down." He unsheathed Dymlos and thrust him forward. "To the anti-grav elevator!"

**"We're in public, dumbass. Put me back."**

Stahn grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I got a little caught up in the moment."

"Let's just do this," Rutee said impatiently.

"Right."

As they stepped on the elevator, Stahn drew in a breath. This was it, what they'd been fighting for this whole time.

_I _will _come back to you, Leon. I swear it._

-xxx-

Leon usually enjoyed the silence, but right now, he felt as though he was drowning in it. After Stahn had taken his leave, the lonely emptiness of his bedroom became painfully apparent and left Leon with nothing to do but think about their earlier conversation.

_"Your life is worth more than that. At least, to me it is."_

Leon closed his eyes and heaved a long sigh. _What the hell am I supposed to take that as? _

Stahn would never know how crazy that little expression of affection was driving Leon or rather, how crazy he was making himself by thinking about it. _Why does he care so much? _Leon wanted to roll over on his side, but couldn't because of his leg. _Damn it... he's not supposed to care... I never joined them with the intent of making friends. _

He couldn't even deny that he thought of them as his friends, not after the emotions that had flooded him when they came to see him. It was such an unfamiliar feeling and he wasn't sure he fully understood it.

The way that Stahn made him feel was the most infuriating of all. It thrilled and terrified him all at once and Leon mentally cursed that goddamn blush that ignited his face every time the blond showed him a little kindness. "So stupid," he muttered, shaking his head.

_He forgave me so easily... what does he want from me?_

He tried to think about something else.

_...the cake was good..._

...It wasn't working.

_Why won't he stop invading my thoughts?_

At the same time, he wished that Stahn hadn't had to leave. Somehow, Leon found it easier to avoid thinking about him when the blond was actually there with him.

He grudgingly figured that it was because he enjoyed having him around.

_I've never felt this starved for company before, _he thought bitterly. But Chaltier had been around then and he always provided Leon with companionship, even when Leon would have preferred the sentient sword to be quiet. He'd never even thought about preparing himself for Chaltier's passing.

But even then, he didn't think that being alone would be so hard. _They changed me... and I don't necessarily feel it was for the better. _

He sighed. Most people would have marvelled at the changes in Leon and gushed about how much 'progress' he'd made. He could only look at it in a negative light. He felt exposed and vulnerable, the weakest he'd seen himself in recent memory. But what really topped it all was that somehow, during that time, he was also the _happiest_ he'd seen himself in recent memory.

_That doesn't even make any sense... I must be taking too much pain medication. _He emitted a nervous laugh. _I'll tell the doctor I need to cut down; apparently, it's making me delusional._

Perhaps it was on purpose that he avoided reminding himself that how he'd felt during Stahn's visit couldn't possibly be induced by the minimal amount of medication he was on.

"You certainly sound amused."

Leon nearly jumped at Marian's voice. He hadn't even heard her open the door. She was smiling at him, looking rather amused herself. Leon felt his face heating up. Marian came over and sat on the edge of his bed. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm all right," he replied with a shrug.

"When I was coming back here, I caught a glimpse of your friends leaving town," Marian said, smoothing Leon's bed sheets more out of habit than necessity. "Did they stop in here?"

Leon nodded, but didn't elaborate. He didn't fully trust himself not to blurt out exactly what was on his mind, especially not amidst the whirlwind of thoughts that he couldn't seem to sort out.

"And how were they?" Marian prompted him.

Leon shrugged. "They haven't changed."

She frowned and studied Leon's face before speaking again. Though he was trying to keep his distress to himself, his face revealed just enough to show her that something was out of place. "Is something bothering you?"

"Like I said, I'm all right." He picked at the same loose thread on the comforter that Stahn's eyes had been fixated on earlier. "You shouldn't worry so much."

"Neither should you." Marian automatically saved the thread from Leon's destructive fiddling. "I can tell that something's wrong."

Part of Leon wanted nothing more than to get all these confused feelings off his chest. Marian was the one person other than Chaltier (and Leon wasn't even sure if he'd counted as an actual person) he felt one hundred percent comfortable talking to. However, he wasn't at ease with these feelings and couldn't bring himself to speak about them. Saying anything out loud would be admitting that he had invested some kind of emotional interest in his friend and he wasn't ready to give into that just yet.

Still, he figured that perhaps Marian would drop the subject if she got some kind of answer, so he improvised. "I... don't think I'll be able to relax until the Aethersphere's gone."

Marian seemed to accept that answer. "I think understand how you feel," she agreed. "But Stahn and your other friends, they're trying to save the world, aren't they?"

Leon nodded his head. "Stahn seemed pretty confident. He even promised that he'd stop Hugo."

Even though Stahn had actually told him that several times now, Leon felt as though he couldn't believe it until it actually happened. There was no way he was going to invest his faith in Stahn and the others only to have his hopes shatter like they had every other time he thought that he'd be able to escape Hugo's oppressive reign over him.

"Do you believe in him?"

Leon let out a long breath. "I'm not going to get my hopes up," he said bluntly.

Marian smiled sadly. "I know it's hard for you," she put her hand over Leon's, prompting him to look up at her with imploring eyes, "but I think you should have a little more faith in Stahn. He's a man of his word, isn't he?"

"He tries to be," Leon reluctantly admitted.

"In that case, he wouldn't have promised if he didn't believe he could do it," the maid reasoned.

"He could be overestimating himself, or underestimating Hugo."

Marian rolled her eyes, her expression a mixture of exasperation and amusement. "You're so stubborn... oh, by the way, the doctor's coming tomorrow morning."

"To tell me that it will be another undetermined amount of time before I'll be on my feet again? I can't wait."

Leon was just not feeling very optimistic, even in spite of what both Stahn and Marian had said to him.

"Stop that," Marian commanded firmly. "Don't be so cynical."

"Sorry..."

"Anyway," she continued, "I'm sure that you'll be cleared within the next few days. Last time, he thought you were doing pretty well."

"I hope you're right."

"Well, that sounds a little better." Marian gave a bit of a laugh. Leon smiled too.

At least the doctor's impending visit gave him something else to think about.


	7. Interlude: House Call

Leon's nerves were positively _shot. _The doctor's visit was just the icing on the anxiety cake, which was baked with liberal amounts of Stahn. He smiled wryly. When his thoughts automatically went to sweets like that, he _knew_ he was stressed.

"Good morning, Leon." The doctor entered the room, shutting the door behind him.

"Good morning," Leon returned the greeting, as he had every other time the doctor had arrived. He was starting to question it, wondering if maybe he should find another way to say hello. Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening all seemed to be cursed. At the very least, they hadn't benefited him.

"You're looking well," said the doctor as he neared the bed. The scrapes and bruises that had marred Leon's face were nearly memories; faded and healing steadily. He put a hand on Leon's chest. "Breathe for me."

Leon did and the doctor looked impressed. "Very good, especially considering how much water you must have ingested."

"I can breathe normally now," Leon informed him. He figured that the better the shape his body as a whole was in, the higher the likelihood of him being cleared to walk.

"Good, good..." the doctor said approvingly. "Now, let's see how that leg of yours is doing... tell me if it hurts, all right?"

They went through this little routine every time as well. The doctor had been in this profession for years now. Even when Leon didn't admit to being in pain, the doctor could read it all over his face. Still, he nodded. "I will."

"How does this feel?"

Leon drew in a breath and screwed his eyes shut as the doctor carefully shifted his leg. "Not _overly _painful."

The doctor examined Leon's expression for hints as to just how painful it was as he moved the leg back into its previous position. "You know that it will probably never heal completely, as it was jostled around a fair deal before we got it splinted."

A sudden panic swept through Leon and it must have shown because the doctor quickly assured him that he was _not_ saying Leon would never be able to walk again; just that he would likely have a limp or have to use a walking aid most of the time.

Leon swallowed. He almost dreaded to ask, but the question came out almost automatically. "...and how much longer do you think it will be before I'll be able to walk again?"

"Do you feel ready to start today?"

Unbelieving violet eyes widened at the suggestion.

"Are you serious?"

"Do you feel up to it?"

"Of course I do." _I have for the past several days._

Obviously, he decided against adding that last bit out loud. He was aware that the doctor knew best and hell, he could walk again. It no longer mattered how many days ago he thought the decision _should_ have been made.

"I wouldn't recommend spending a lot of time on your feet for at least another couple of days," the doctor warned, "but your leg does seem to be getting better and the rest of you is very in tact," he shrugged, "so I don't see any reason why you shouldn't start getting used to your crutches now. You're going to be using them for a while."

Leon felt like bursting with joy. It didn't even matter that he would probably be on crutches for the forseeable future. After spending so many days in bed, the end was in sight. Surely he'd be able to rest easier when a day consisted of doing more than playing prisoner to his darkest thoughts. He could finally start to get his life back on track. "Thank you..."

"I'll want to check up on you and, more specifically, your leg again within the next few days," the doctor told him. "You'll still have to keep it wrapped for a few more weeks to ensure that the bones stay in place."

Leon nodded and thanked the doctor again. He knew he sounded repetitious but it was the only way to express his gratitude and relief. Well, he could have always leapt into the doctor's arms and expressed his thanks in some kind of odd poetic way, but Leon didn't do things like that. Normally, he would assume and hope that nobody did, but he wouldn't exactly put it past some of the people he knew.

Karyl, for instance.

"That's what I'm here for," the doctor accepted Leon's thanks with a smile. He turned to leave. "I'll see you again at the end of the week. Take care."

"You too."


	8. Promises and Tragedies

For the first night in recent memory, Leon was actually tired. He probably would have fallen asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow if it weren't for Stahn.

He just might as well have been there chattering at Leon's ear nonstop, because Stahn's voice was his mind's chosen torture for the night. The last conversation they'd had was stuck replaying in his mind like some kind of trauma he'd rather forget.

He'd had a hard time trying to figure out why his feelings for Stahn had bothered him, hobbled through Darilsheid on his crutches for the better part of two hours sorting through his thoughts before finally coming to the conclusion that he was _scared_.

Scared. He snorted. How ironic that the boy just shy of being named the youngest general in Seinegald was scared of something as simple as a couple of affectionate acts from some blond country boy with a mentality to fit both stereotypes.

No matter how much sarcasm he tried to sprinkle his thoughts with, he couldn't erase the fear. He knew damn well what had triggered it. This wasn't fluttery, fairy-tale, _does he like me_ fear; he was afraid that Stahn would fail to stop Hugo. If that were the case, nothing would change. Leon would be found alive and continue to be an accessory to Hugo's plan.

It was odd, really. In spite of how absent Hugo had been throughout Leon's life, he'd had an almost ridiculous amount of influence over him. It wasn't so much the man himself; the man himself was pathetic. No, it was his power and influence that confined Leon. Without that, he'd be no threat at all, just another sicko hellbent on some ludicrous goal. But as long as he was able to use Marian as a bargaining tool, Leon would have no choice but to follow him.

The only way Stahn would be able to fit into _that_ life would be as an annoyance that needed disposing of.

The worst case scenario played itself over and over in Leon's head even as he finally drifted off.

-xxx-

Belcrant was perhaps the most menacing of the Aeropolises Stahn had been too. He wasn't sure if it was the place itself or the fact that he was that much closer to stopping Hugo. Either way, an uneasy feeling had settled in the pit of his stomach. He was surrounded by conversation, some of his teammates chatting in nervous tones, trying to distract themselves from the weight of the situation at hand. Stahn wasn't hearing any of it. He kept remembering the last chance they'd had to stop Hugo.

_So far, the old Oberon Factory had proven itself to be every bit as suspicious as Stahn and the others assumed it to be. They were right in coming here, but the way they'd yet to catch up to Hugo was troubling, especially when it was so obvious he was there. An eventual run in was inevitable, unless they'd arrived too late. Stahn hoped that wasn't the case; the king of Seinegald was counting on them and he wasn't in the business of letting people down. _

_"Hey," Rutee got his attention. "Do you hear something?"_

_Stahn listened for a moment and realized that Rutee was right. He heard voices. Apparently the rest of the party had as well, for an uncharacteristic silence had stricken them. The voices sounded close, but still too far away to properly understand what they were saying. Even so, Stahn was willing to bet all the Gald he had that they'd found who they were looking for._

_**"Be careful, Stahn," **__Dymlos warned him after a few more minutes of walking. __**"Someone's there."**_

_Sure enough, as Stahn turned the corner he saw some very familiar people. Hugo was there, a nauseatingly triumphant smirk on his face. The sight of him sent a rush of angry adrenaline through Stahn's veins and he tightly gripped Dymlos's hilt. He saw Marian and frowned slightly, questioning why on earth she would be there. Then, he noticed that the old man Rembrandt wasn't just standing behind her--he was holding her by her wrists and she looked very distraught. She was being held hostage. Stahn shuddered. Just how low was Hugo willing to sink? Finally, Stahn's heart dropped at the sight of the one he'd been hoping against all hope wouldn't be there._

_Leon. _

_Stahn had seen the boy glance at him out of the corner of his eye, but Leon made no motion to actually look toward him and instead averted his gaze to the ground. Stahn tried to peer at him, to catch even a glimpse of his expression, but Leon's bangs obscured his face. _

_He refocused in time to see Hugo starting to slink away. _

_"Wait a minute!" Rutee protested from beside Stahn. "Hugo!"_

_Hugo actually did stop in his tracks, but he didn't seem inclined to stay put for very long._

_Rembrandt took a step forward, holding Marian in front of him as though offering a lamb for sacrifice. "Don't come any closer," he commanded. Stahn made a growling noise deep in his throat. They were playing dirty and he knew it was only going to get worse._

_"Emilio!" Hugo barked at Leon. Miserably, the boy turned to regard him. "Finish them."_

_For the first time, Marian struggled against Rembrandt's grasp. "No!" she cried, trying in vain to break away. "Stop!"_

_"Marian!" Stahn took a step toward her, wanting nothing more than to send her and Leon far away from this place. Neither of them were here by their own free will; Stahn had been able to determine that from the way Leon refused to look at him. Had he been intending to betray them from the start, he would have defiantly looked Stahn in the eye and told him so. _

_Hugo told the woman to shut up and then hurried off. Rembrandt followed, dragging his reluctant prisoner along. That left Leon to face his former comrades all by himself. _

Stahn still cursed himself for hesitating. He should have gone at Hugo as soon as the opportunity had presented itself. It certainly would've saved everyone a lot of grief.

He shook his head. This wasn't the time for regrets. This was a second chance to take Hugo out and he'd be damned if anything was going to get in his way. He'd promised Ilene, he'd promised Leon and Stahn Aileron didn't break his promises. After Hugo fell, he hoped that Leon would be able to let his guard down somewhat and they could finally have a normal, friendly relationship.

For some reason, something inside Stahn twinged when he thought of a 'normal and friendly' relationship. He was too distracted by his determination to defeat Hugo to realize it right then, but that twinge was a need for something more, something deeper.

Something...

"Hey!" Rutee snapped her fingers in front of Stahn's face to get his attention.

"Huh?"

"This isn't the time to be spacing out," she scolded.

Stahn scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry."

"Are you all right, Stahn?" Philia peered at him worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm--"

"Hold that thought." Rutee suddenly stopped and unsheathed Atwight. "We've got company."

Sure enough, a small flock of Balrogs, four of them, were closing in on the party. While traveling through Belcrant, the group had become well acquainted with the flying creatures, but never this many at once. Stahn could see Rutee getting nervous, no doubt wondering how much more healing Atwight would be able to handle.

To Stahn, they looked like a demonic genetic experiment gone awry. One of the massive purple monsters, apparently the alpha of the group, violently flapped its batlike wings and let out a fierce roar.

"Damn," Garr growled. "We're surrounded." Like Rutee, he assumed a battle stance. "We have little choice, I'm afraid."

Stahn clenched his teeth. _Another pain in the ass I don't need..._

"We're never gonna get to Hugo in time if this keeps up!" Chelsea yelled in frustration, voicing Stahn's thoughts exactly. "Argh!" She loosed an arrow from her bow, cleanly taking one of the monster's in its wing. It hissed in pain and lunged.

"And if we did have a choice, we don't anymore!" Rutee looked pointedly at Chelsea before intercepting the angry Balrog with an ice spell. If the monsters weren't volatile before, the sudden cold shock made them unquestionably so. Stahn readied Dymlos, maintaining a cautious eye on one of the beasts.

All hell broke loose.

The Balrog dove at Stahn, who narrowly dodged, nearly hitting the floor. He buckled his knees and kept his balance by bracing one hand against the floor and swung Dymlos with the other. A wave of flame blasted skywards, scorching the monster. It released a cry of agony and lashed Stahn with its tail, striking him in the face.

Mary leapt forward with a cry and hit it in the back with her axe before it could take advantage of Stahn's momentary disorientation. After getting his bearings, he gave her a quick word of thanks and, between the two of them and their blades, made short, bloody work of it.

"One down..." Stahn panted, pausing for a moment to catch his breath.

"...and three more to go," Mary finished.

"You might wanna make that two!" Karyl corrected as Philia held Clemente out in front of her and began to chant. His core crystal glowed brightly and a brilliant light emitted.

"Ray!"

The monsters' simultaneous shriek was eardrum blowing, but worth it as the one Garr and Khang had been wearing down fell. It writhed in pain for a couple of moments and then fell still. The other two seemed rather dazed.

The fact that there were still two more of them irritated Stahn; it wasn't as though Hugo was going to wait around for them. On the contrary, Stahn sourly predicted, that man would probably be eager to avoid a confrontation.

"I think we should try to run," he announced suddenly, prompting heads to turn in his direction. "Catching Hugo is more important right now."

"They may follow us," Philia fretted.

"I have an idea!" Chelsea piped up. "Philia, where's our food sack?"

The priestess produced it without question and Chelsea swiftly rummaged through it. Stahn kept a wary eye on the Balrogs, as they were starting to regain their senses. "Hurry, Chelsea!" he urged.

"Aha!" The pink haired archer turned to him with a thumbs up as she produced three steaks and threw them toward the beasts. "Now let's get out of here!"

Stahn cast a mournful look in the direction of what would have been perfectly good meat, but he and the others wasted little time fleeing. They didn't slow down until they were certain that the now feasting Balrogs hadn't come after them.

**"Is everyone all right?" **Atwight queried once the group's pace lost some of its urgency.

"Anyone need healing?" Rutee added, mostly for the benefit of those who could not hear Atwight.

Murmurs rippled throughout the group, affirming that, aside from a few bumps, cuts and bruises, everyone was okay.

"In that case, we can't afford to waste any more time," said Stahn. "Let's go!"

-xxx-

Leon suddenly awoke with tears streaming down his face. His heart was trying to beat its way out of his chest and it was several seconds before he managed to catch his breath.

Stahn had failed to stop Hugo.

He'd been getting used to those kinds of dreams, but this one had a twist that made him sick to his stomach. Instead of being defeated by Hugo right then and there, it was by Leon's unwilling hand that Stahn was killed.

He sat up and looked toward the window. "You're a man of your word, Stahn," he whispered decisively, an effort to console himself.

As he was already quite rattled, the eerie owl cry that came from outside made him feel strangely unsettled. He swallowed.

"...right?"

-xxx-

In spite of a few mild annoyances (though nothing else quite as intimidating as a flock of four Balrogs), the rest of Belcrant was a breeze to traverse. It may have just been Stahn's determination to defeat Hugo, which grew more and more fierce with each step closer, that was driving him, but they made it to the top quite quickly. Stahn's friends appeared to be being careful around him. He knew why. It was rare for the blond swordsman to take such an utter dislike to another person, but he felt that Hugo had crossed far too many lines. The fact that he was insane enough to attempt to destroy the world was enough on its own. Leaving Leon to be killed and Ilene's death were just fuel added to an already raging fire.

That's why, upon seeing Hugo, Stahn broke into a run. He was hardly aware of whether or not his teammates were following him.

"Hugo!" he exclaimed, coming to a halt.

Hugo glanced over his shoulder, then turned around to face Stahn and the others, raising his eyebrows. "If you followed me here, that means Emilio must have failed me..." He sounded so careless, so unconcerned. Stahn gritted his teeth, narrowing his eyes into angry slits.

"You..." he growled, his shaking hand clenched tightly around Dymlos's hilt.

"You're _finished!_" Rutee came in. "This is the end of the line for you!"

Hugo studied her with a condescending smile. "Like father, like daughter," he said musingly. "The same blood runs through our veins."

Rutee was furious, but contained herself when Garr glanced at her as though to warn her not to lose focus. Stahn was kind of disappointed that she _didn't _verbally assault their adversary.

"You're outnumbered," Garr informed Hugo. "It will be easier on everyone involved, yourself included, if you choose to surrender peacefully."

"Surrender?" Hugo repeated with a laugh. "Why should I surrender when the odds are in my favour?"

"Stop deluding yourself!" Stahn shouted. "You know it's over, so just give it up!"

The amused look Hugo gave him in response only served to anger him further. "How wrong you are... my dear Swordians, do you remember this sword?"

Dymlos's confusion and shock ran so deep that Stahn could feel it pulsating through him as Hugo revealed a sword with a peculiar black blade.

**"Greetings, comrades. It's been a long time."**

The Swordians all started talking at once, the surprised reaction consistant in all of them.

**"Berselius!?"**

**"You can't be!"**

**"Impossible..."**

**"But... you're supposed to be dead."**

**"Yes," **the Swordian, Berselius, confirmed. **"Yet, I am right here before you. Now how can that be?" **He pretended to ponder, mocking the other Swordians.

"What do you think?" Hugo taunted. "In my possession, I have the ultimate Swordian from the A'ether Wars. Do you still think you can defeat me?"

Stahn gritted his teeth in determination. "I promised Ilene and," he lowered his voice, "I promised Leon." For the first time, Hugo's confident expression wavered. Everything _hadn't_ gone as he'd expected after all. Stahn's defiant blue eyes met Hugo's. "You're not going to win!"

"Emil-- Leon is still alive?" Hugo repeated, frowning. "That's not possible!"

"Yes, he is," Stahn confirmed, smirking at Hugo's uncharacteristic bewilderment. "And that just gives me more of a reason to take you down!"

Stahn could practically see the wheels in Hugo's head turning as his startled expression made way for a breezy smile. "So he really did survive... I'm sure you were happy to hear that."

Stahn faltered somewhat, wary of Hugo's sudden change in attitude. "...what are you getting at?"

"Don't you think it would be a shame if something were to happen to him?" Hugo shrugged. "After all, I'm sure his survival was miraculous."

Philia gasped. "You wouldn't...!"

"All right, Hugo." Stahn glowered at him, pure hatred burning in his eyes.  
"Just what the hell do you want from us?"

"Your cooperation would be nice," Hugo replied. "Why don't you join me? We can build a new world together."

Garr was the first to shake his head, though Stahn knew that they'd all immediately thought _no_ before Hugo even uttered his proposition. "I couldn't bring myself to create a new world from the destruction of another."

"Exactly," Rutee agreed.

Hugo feigned a wounded look. "Your words are like ice daggers stabbing into my heart." Stahn couldn't help but snort at the melodramatic similie. "Your father is asking for your help..."

"You'll never be a father to me!" Rutee spat in disgust. "_Never!_"

"I'm relieved to hear that." Hugo pointed the tip of Berselius's blade at Stahn. "Now I can send you to your deaths with a clear conscience."

Stahn brandished Dymlos. "We're not going to lose to you!"

"Then what are you waiting for? All you have to lose are your pathetic lives!"

Before Hugo even had a chance to get the last sentence out of his mouth, Stahn lunged. Hugo just barely blocked a strike that would have undoubtedly caused a severe wound. Silver blade clashed against black as the two men waged war. Stahn knew he had more at stake here and was starting to grow annoyed with the way Hugo refused to relent. At this rate, he wouldn't be able to find an opening to use one of Dymlos's fire spells.

His teammates were all prepared to jump in if need be, but Stahn didn't signal them. It may have been selfish, but he wanted to be the reason Hugo fell. He wanted to keep his promise to Leon.

His frustration was throwing him off. He couldn't land a hit or get away long enough to cast a spell. He clenched his jaw. Hugo's insistance on building a new world was completely crazy, but the ferocity with which he was fighting proved that he was dead serious about it. Berselius was suddenly plunged into Stahn's leg. Blood blossomed and he stumbled, a sharp pain stabbing through his thigh. That one falter provided Hugo with the chance to knock Stahn to the floor and prevent him from getting up by launching a frenzied attack. Stahn blocked what he could but he could feel the blade bruising and cutting his skin more than clanging off Dymlos or his shield. The man's attack was unforgiving.

Just then, a well aimed arrow whizzed by, hitting Hugo in the hand with which he held Berselius. Stahn faintly heard Rutee call him a stubborn idiot as she had Atwight cast a healing spell. A rain of arrows, courtesty of Chelsea, kept Hugo at bay, allowing Stahn a chance to recover and orient himself.

Philia, meanwhile, was readying a spell.

_"Flare Tornado!" _

Fire blasted from Clemente, picking up speed and becoming a furious cyclone as it veered toward Hugo. He managed to avoid the brunt of the spell by diving to the floor, but damage was still done. Stahn had his opening. It wasn't the most honourable tactic, but as far as Stahn was concerned, Hugo was the one exception to the rule about not kicking a man while he was down.

Dymlos's core crystal began to glow a deep red.

_"Fire Storm!"_

The only thing that prevented Stahn from taking full advantage and cutting his throat right then and there was a sudden pang of pity. He just wasn't capable of being utterly ruthless. Maintaining a defensive stance, he stood by, wondering if the fallen president was finally ready to give in.

Hugo lifted his head, staring balefully at Stahn through the tangled curtain of greying hair that had fallen across his face. The look in his violet eyes was enough to make Stahn wince, as did the death grip with which his wounded hand clutched onto Berselius's hilt. Hugo was just not one to give up. Stahn exhaled, watching and gritting his teeth. Hugo made it apparent that there could be no compromise; this was a do or die situation. Stahn's mind was completely made up now; for everyone's sake, he could not let Hugo leave Belcrant alive.

As Hugo shakily struggled to his feet, Stahn charged at him. Dymlos's blade ran straight through Hugo's midsection. Hugo released an agony ridden sound and as Stahn slid his bloodstained blade out of his adversary, he knew it had to be over. Still, he kept a cautious eye on Hugo even as the man dropped to the floor, dropping Berselius, half-convulsing and disgorging thick mouthfuls of blood and bile.

**"You did it, Stahn!" **Dymlos exclaimed proudly.

In all honesty, Stahn wished he hadn't had to take things this far, but if this is what it took to save the world, to avenge Ilene and to protect Leon then there was no other option. "What do you think now, Hugo?" he asked. "We kept our promise."

Hugo didn't even look at him.

"We'll destroy the Aethersphere," Garr said solemnly, "and restore peace back to the world."

"Your evil ambitions are finished," Philia said, her voice echoing Stahn's slightly mixed feelings.

Hugo lifted his head then, glazed eyes focused on Rutee. She glared down at him and darkly informed him, "You did this to yourself."

"Rutee..." Hugo choked in such an unfamiliar tone that everyone turned their heads to look at him. "...my daughter..."

Rutee frowned, perplexed.

"I'm... so sorry..."

"What are you talking about?" Rutee's forehead creased in question and concern.

"...Berselius," Hugo rasped, "enslaved my mind... and used me... for his ends. I tried..." he paused, coughing and spitting up some more blood. "I tried... to fight him... I had to... abandon you... because I wanted... I wanted to protect you... from him... from becoming... his slave..." His eyelids dropped. "I... am sorry..."

"Hugo?" Rutee's voice was suddenly very small. Stahn turned his head. Guilt swelled in the pit of his stomach. He couldn't even bring himself to look at Hugo now.

Hugo forced his eyes open. "My dear daughter... please... show me your face... just one more time..."

"Father?" Her calling him that was a sign of forgiveness and made Stahn feel even worse.

"...Please..."

"Father!" Rutee started toward him, but Garr grabbed her by the upper arm.

"Rutee, wait!" he said. "What if this is a trap?"

She glowered at the young king and broke free of him, hurrying to Hugo's side. He was losing blood rapidly and his breathing was dangerously laboured. "...Rutee..." he said fondly, reaching up with the last of his strength and touching the side of her face. The arrow wound in his hand was already swelling with infection. "I am... truly sorry..." His hand dropped and he let his eyes close. His body seized up and then fell very still.

"No..." Rutee stared at him, horrified. She took his limp body up in her arms, giving him a light shake. "Please, don't die..."

He didn't move.

"Atwight! Please help me!" Rutee's voice broke and tears welled up in her eyes. "He's dying!"

**"It's too late..." **Atwight said sadly.

"No!" Rutee shook her head fiercely, sounding so anguished that Stahn flinched. Tears pricked at his eyes. He could see tears streaming down Philia's cheeks. Chelsea was sniffling and clinging to Garr's arm for support. His eyes were downcast, a somber expression on his face. Karyl, looking to be on the verge of tears himself, had a comforting arm around a completely devastated Mary. Even Khang looked saddened. "It's not too late!" Rutee wailed. "It can't be!"

**"I can't revive the dead." **The Swordian sounded as helpless as the rest of them felt. **"Please understand..."**

"No!" Rutee shook her head again, clutching Hugo's blood sodden body closer to her. "No..." she gave in then and broke down sobbing. Stahn swallowed the lump in his throat and went over to her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Rutee," he said gently, crouching down, "I'm sure Hugo found happiness in the end because he was able to tell you as your father... not as Berselius's slave."

"Stahn..."

Stahn wrapped his arms around her in a consoling hug.

**"Yes." **Stahn looked up with a frown as he heard a new voice enter the conversation. **"It is true he found happiness."**

**"Who's there?!" **Dymlos asked.

"Is it Berselius?" Stahn wondered, casting a glance at the black sword they'd all forgotten about.

**"No, you're wrong." **

A strange darkness engulfed the party for a moment and when the light returned, there was another person in the room; a man dressed in silver. He had long, flowing blond hair and cold eyes. Oddest of all, he was levitating. Stahn tensed. This could only mean trouble. The strong distress he felt from Dymlos only intensified his anxiety.

"Greetings, my dear Swordians," the man addressed them. "Have you forgotten about me, the king of the Aetherians?"

-xxx-

Leon couldn't get back to sleep after that nightmare he'd had. It had given him a dark feeling he couldn't shake, like something terrible was about to happen. He glanced out the window again.

The owl that had been sitting in the tree was gone.


	9. Fallback

Stahn stared up at the newcomer in bewilderment. He had one hand on his hip and was eyeing them with a cold smirk on his face. There were strong feelings radiating from Dymlos; confusion, fear, and even loathing.

**"Miktran!?" **he exclaimed. **"But... we defeated you!! I remember it!"**

The man, apparently named Miktran, nodded. "That's true. I died during the Aeth'er Wars."

"Then how are you...?" Stahn began apprehensively, but was cut off by Miktran.

"That problem was solved for me by Berselius."

His body dematerialized, and reappeared before the black Swordian, whose presence had been forgotten by Stahn and the others. He picked him up.

**"Your soul escaped into Berselius." **

Miktran teleported back to his original position. "Well done, Clemente," he praised the old Swordian. "I didn't expect anything less from the most intelligent general of the Erther Army."

"So _you_ were the one who was controlling Hugo," Stahn said slowly. "Not Berselius."

"Naturally," Miktran said, his tone oozing self satisfaction. "Like I told you, he was a happy man." His cruel features lit up and he laughed as though he'd told a hilarious joke.

Stahn snarled up his face and gripped Dymlos' hilt. "You bastard!"

Rutee clenched her fists. "I won't forgive you," she vowed in a voice hardly above a whisper.

Miktran looked at her. "What did you say?"

Rutee glared at him. "I will never forgive you, you son of a _bitch!_"

"Hold your tongue, little girl!" Miktran demanded, making Rutee seethe. "You're trying my patience." Ignoring her anger, he went on to address the rest of the group. "You're nothing but insects to me now."

"Insects?" Stahn repeated. He'd already had it with this guy's arrogance, but was hesitant to attack. Judging by the way he'd controlled Hugo, Miktran wasn't just talk.

"Yes! In fact, I shall show you first hand!" The air suddenly became dense. Stahn could hardly breathe as it formed into hot, white rays of light at Miktran's command and started to gather into Berselius. "You shall bear witness to my true powers!"

"Berselius!?"

"What the...?" Garr gasped.

"Behold!" Miktran crowed. "Behold the power of Swordian Prime!"

**"Swordian Prime?" **Clemente repeated. Stahn gulped. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

"Berselius has evolved," Miktran explained. "How do you expect to defeat me?"

Stahn gritted his teeth. "We'll never know until we try!"

The smile completely vanished from Miktran's face. "Then you shall feel its powers through your meaningless deaths."

He closed his eyes and began to chant.

"C'mon!" Stahn yelled to his comrades. "Now's our--! Augh!"

Miktran finished his incantation and a river of fire engulfed the party. Stahn's own scream sounded alien to him as he dropped to the floor, curling up tighter and tighter in a futile attempt to get away from the searing pain. He could faintly hear the anguished cries of his teammates as they too were overwhelmed by the powerful spell.

Miktran looked on, disappointed. "Are you done already? Where is your fighting spirit?" he taunted.

**"Stahn! Come on!" **Dymlos urged, but Stahn could do little more than groan in response.

"As long as you're here," Miktran continued, "I shall allow you the privelege of watching as the world is swallowed by darkness."

**"No!" **Dymlos protested frantically. **"Stop it, Miktran!"**

"You Swordians must watch this too. This is the moment of victory for the Aetherians! _Fire, Belcrant!_"

-xxx-

Around five in the morning, Leon had finally started to drift into a fitful sleep. It was less than half an hour later that he was shaken out of it by a deep rumble in the earth. He shot up in bed and became quite panicked upon realizing that he couldn't see anything at all. It was as though his bedroom window had been blanketed in black. There was no moon and no stars, just darkness.

He felt sick and his heart was trying to break out of his chest. "Stahn... please be alright..." He'd never been particularly religious, but he clasped his hands in front of him and began whispering a desperate prayer to Atamoni.

He suddenly opened his eyes again and remembered something equally important--Marian.

_I'm sure she's okay... she's here in the mansion, and _I'm _fine so..._

He released a long sigh of relief when his bedroom door opened and he saw Marian come in, her soft features lit by the light of the candle she held in her hand.

"Emilio, are you all right?" she came in and sat on the edge of his bed. She put the candle on the nightstand and pulled him toward her, hugging him tightly.

Leon nodded and freed himself from her embrace. "What's going on?" he asked her.

"I don't know," she said sadly, taking his hand into her own. "I just hope your friends are safe."

Leon said nothing. He just nodded in agreement and leaned into the maid's side and resumed his prayer in his head, hoping that at least one repetition of it would reach heaven.

-xxx-

When Stahn came to, he found himself lying on a soft mattress in a dimly lit room. The room was swaying slightly and Stahn realized that he must have been on a boat. The prior events were all fuzzy in his head and he wondered if he'd simply dreamt Miktran up. He shifted and groaned. His whole body still felt impossibly exhausted and sore. Judging by that, he could safely assume that Miktran was indeed real.

**"Stahn..."**

"Are you alright?"

Stahn looked up and saw a familiar looking blue haired man staring down at him, teal eyes wide with concern.

"Fayte?" What was going on here? Fayte was a friend of Karyl's whom Stahn hadn't seen in a very long time. He narrowed his eyes. Just how long had he been out? "What's going on?"

"We were sailing to Seinegald when we saw something fall from the sky," Fayte explained. "Then, we found you adrift in the ocean." The young sounded puzzled, but Stahn had bigger concerns than enlightening him.

"Fayte, did you find the others too?" he asked, panic stricken. If anything had happened to them...

"Yeah. They're okay, they're just sleeping right now."

Stahn breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Thank Atamoni..."

"I'm not going to ask you to explain anything right now," Fayte told him. "You need to rest. We're heading to Darilsheid. I'll wake you up when we get there."

"Thanks..." Stahn said. Every bone in his aching body echoed his gratitude.

Fayte smiled. "I'll see you then."

**"Talk about out of left field," **Dymlos said. **"At least Fayte was in the right place at the right time."**

"...now what?" Stahn asked as he nestled his head into his pillow.

**"We're going to have to go back up onto the Aeth'er Sphere using the anti-grav elevator. We have no other choice."**

"But Miktran was so powerful... do you think we can actually defeat him?" Stahn murmured as his eyelids began to drop.

**"...just get some rest."**

Stahn was out before Dymlos even finished his sentence.

-xxx-

Leon opened his eyes to once again to see darkness outside his window. Some of it had lifted and it wasn't the same pitch black it had been earlier. The sky looked like it was full of dark thunder clouds, except he couldn't see any clouds, just one dark grey sheet obscuring the whole sky.

He couldn't remember when he'd fallen asleep, but apparently Marian must have left some time between then and now. Sitting up, he stared meaningfully through the gloom outside. "You'd better be alive, Stahn..."

_"Emilio!" _

He started as Marian came into the room. Her eyes were bright and she was smiling broadly.

"I heard in town that Stahn and the others arrived by ship this morning," she told him joyfully.

"..." Leon did a double take. It sounded too good to be true. "Are you serious?"

"Yes. They went directly to the castle and are likely reporting to the king." Her smile grew even wider, if that was even possible. "Isn't this wonderful?"

Leon's eyes widened. "...they made it..." he whispered with a shaky smile. "Stahn kept his promise after all!" He could feel his heart swelling. He'd never been so relieved, so grateful, so _happy_ in his entire life. "Can we go see them?" he implored.

Marian nodded. "Of course... if the king will let us in."

Leon reached for his crutches and stood up.

"You should probably get dressed first," Marian advised him.

Leon looked at her with a sheepish smile. "That might be a good idea."

-xxx-

"...and although we defeated Hugo, Miktran has been revived." Stahn finished relating the events to the king of Seinegald. He and the others were crowded in front of the throne. The seven generals of Seinegald were also present.

The old man nodded slowly, taking in everything he was told. "But who is Miktran?"

Just then, Stahn heard footsteps. Someone was entering the throne room and through his peripheral vision he saw that it was Leon hobbling in on crutches and Marian accompanying him. Stahn wondered how they'd gotten in, but mentally kicked himself as he recalled Leon's position in kingdom prior to his injury. He smiled in Leon's direction. He couldn't wait to talk to him. Leon returned the smile, then focused his attention on Garr, who was answering the king's question.

"Miktran was, I mean, _is_ the king of the Aetherians. He was the mastermind behind the ancient Aeth'er Wars."

"What!?" the king exclaimed, clearly perplexed by the turn of events.

"Don't worry about it!" Stahn said, sounding a lot more confident than he actually felt. "We'll just go up into the sky again and stop Miktran!"

The king was silent for a long while. Stahn gnawed on his lower lip, anxiously awaiting the king's answer. "...That's impossible."

Stahn felt deflated.

"Don't write us off before we even try!" Rutee exclaimed.

"No, it's not that..."

One of the generals, Ashley, stepped forward. "Radisrol is under enemy control."

There was a general exclamation of disbelief from Stahn and his friends.

**"What happened to Raiker?" **Dymlos wondered.

Since he was unable to hear Dymlos, the Swordian's question went unanswered as the king informed them, "The anti-grav elevator has stopped working."

"You mean... we have no contact with Radisrol at all?"

Stahn couldn't believe it. This was the worst possible scenario!

"No... the assistant onboard Radisrol managed to escape," Ashley answered, "but he's in critical condition."

"Damn it!" Stahn cursed.

"What can we do now?" Philia asked the king.

"We're working on figuring something out," the king assured her. "Anyway, Fayte informed me that you have all been through a lot. I'm sure it's taken quite a physical toll on you. Please, take today to rest so that when we decide what action to take, you will be ready to carry it out."

"But we don't have time to rest!" Rutee protested.

"Rutee," Garr warned her softly. He then looked at the king and bowed his head. "We understand, your Majesty."

"Don't worry, Rutee," Mary assured her friend. "The king's right, we're not going to be able to do anything until they figure something out. It's useless to waste energy now."

"I guess..." Rutee still had a defiant look on her face and her eyes were burning with vengeance.

"You are dismissed," the king said. They all bowed and took their leave, leaving only the seven generals in the throne room, likely to discuss a course of action.

-xxx-

"Leon!" Stahn hurried over to him as soon as they were outside, he was followed by the rest of the group. "I see you're on your feet again."

Leon nodded.

"Yeah," Chelsea piped up. "You look a _lot_ better than you did the last time we were here."

Leon stared at her, raising an eyebrow. "Um... you seem to be doing well, too."

Stahn laughed. Leon obviously didn't know whether to take that as a compliment or an insult.

Marian smiled at them. "I'm so glad to see that you're all okay."

"Well, we _did_ say that we were going to make it back alive," Rutee said. "Don't you guys have any faith in us?"

"Keh." Karyl rolled his eyes. "Leon's, like, the eternal pessimist."

"...thanks."

"It's not over yet," Garr reminded them grimly. Stahn sighed. The Phandarian king had decided to take it upon himself to kill everyone's positivity, like a rain cloud at a picnic.

Chelsea stuck her tongue out. "Phooey. I hate Miktran. This could've been a really awesome day!"

"Don't worry, Chelsea," said Philia cheerfully. "We have to stay here for now, so you can have as much fun as you want to."

"Yeah... hey, Philia. Can we go get some snacks?"

"I would love to," Philia replied, "as long as the stores are open."

"Let's go check!" Chelsea exclaimed, leading Philia away. "Leon, I'm going to buy you another cake, okay?" she called over her shoulder.

Stahn cracked up over the way Leon tried to hide how thrilled that prospect made him.

-xxx-

After a little more conversation, the group soon dispersed, leaving Stahn and Leon alone.

"Stahn, thanks for making it back," Leon said, suddenly seeming very shy.

Stahn grinned and slung his arm around his friend's narrow shoulders. "Like I told you before, I always keep my promises!"

"But what about Miktran? Do you think you'll be able to defeat him?"

"Of course. We just need some more training." He withdrew his arm and started walking, making sure to walk slowly enough for Leon to keep up with him. "Anyway, I don't even want to think about him today."

"Not thinking about him won't make him go away," Leon pointed out.

"Karyl was right. You _are_ the eternal pessimist." Stahn laughed. "Lighten up!"

Leon smiled. "Right."

As Hugo's mansion came into sight, Stahn felt a sick feeling in his stomach as he remembered the man's last words.

"...well, Hugo will never be coming back here," he stated quietly.

"I... I can hardly believe it." Leon shook his head. "It's so hard to imagine what it's going to be like without him around."

Stahn sighed. "Actually, I feel terrible about it."

Leon peered at him curiously, furrowing his brow.

"He can't be held responsible for his actions."

Leon's frown deepened, but instead of saying anything, he silently prompted Stahn to continue.

"The man was possessed. Knowing that, I can't talk about his death without feeling guilty." Stahn's expression was one of regret. "By the time we found out, it was too late to save him. Rutee was--is _really_ upset."

"Of course she is," Leon muttered. "She didn't know him."

"He couldn't help it--"

"I don't want to hear anymore," Leon interrupted curtly, shifting his gaze away from Stahn.

"Leon, I don't think you understand..." Stahn trailed off as Leon sharply jerked his head toward him, violet eyes positively ablaze.

"_I_ don't understand?" he repeated incredulously. "No, Stahn; _you're _the one who doesn't fucking understand!" Leon angrily turned on his crutches and started to hobble away.

"Leon, wait--"

Leon didn't spare Stahn so much as a glance as he disappeared into the mansion.

Stahn stared after him, but chose not to follow right away, figuring that it might be better to give Leon a few minutes to cool down. "Goddamnit!" he growled through clenched teeth, striking the mansion's outer wall with the side of his hand.

**"Stahn..."**

"Why the hell can't I keep my mouth shut?" Stahn sighed and covered his face with his hands. "Explain that to me."

**"You meant well, right? If nothing else, Leon will at least come to appreciate that."**

"...Thanks, Dymlos."

As much as Dymlos picked on and nagged at Stahn, the Swordian really did care about his master and it hurt him to see Stahn so down on himself.

"Hey."

He turned around to see Mary behind him. "How long have you been there?" he asked her, forcing a bit of an apologetic smile onto his face.

"Not long enough to know what's going on." Mary raised a questioning eyebrow.

Stahn sighed. "I said something that upset Leon." He looked around. "Hey, where's Rutee?"

"I'm not really sure." The redhead shrugged her shoulders. "She was still pretty upset last time I saw her, though."

"Do you think you could find her and keep her away from the mansion for a while? Her and Leon are likely to lock horns right now and that's the last thing either of them need."

"No problem."

Stahn flashed her a smile. "Thanks, Mary."

"Are you going inside?" Mary asked him as he walked up the steps. He looked over his shoulder and nodded.

"I can't just leave things the way they are."

"Good luck." With that well wishing, Mary darted off, presumably to find Rutee.

Once she was out of sight, Stahn faced the mansion door and, drawing in a breath, let himself in.

-xxx-

Upstairs in his room, Leon was _fuming_. Even though his crutches had prevented him from satisfyingly stomping up the stairs, his fury had been written all over his face, prompting the maids to stay the hell out of his way.

He wanted to know where Stahn got off telling him that he didn't understand. Had _he_ lived with Hugo his whole life? Nothing that wretch said during his last moments could change everything he'd put Leon through. And Marian, for that matter. The threats on Marian's life were what really sent Leon's abhorrence of the bastard over the edge. He'd grown accustomed to being used, but for Hugo to drag a woman whose only crime was being adored by Leon into his twisted scheme was too much.

Of course he wished he could forgive Hugo. He wanted to be able to get rid of this heavy black cloud once and for all, but he couldn't. Hugo had done so many terrible things, _unforgivable _things and yet he'd _still _managed to sway Stahn and the others with a conscience clearing spiel. He'd always had a way with words; it was part of his job for Atamoni's sake! Was Stahn really that naive?

Anger overwhelmed him all over again and he flung his pillow at the door...

"Hey, Le--"

...only to nail Stahn right in the face as the blond swordsman opened it.

Leon glared daggers at him. "Don't you know how to knock?"

Stahn remained in the doorway, nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "We need to talk."

Leon beckoned for him to come in. Stahn did, closing the door behind him. Picking the pillow up from where it hit the floor, he brought it over to the bed where Leon had himself propped up against the headboard and remaining pillow. "Here, let me fix this for you."

Leon still said nothing, but allowed Stahn to adjust his pillows. Upon finishing, Stahn sat down at the edge of the bed. "Leon."

"What?" Leon said flatly, staring straight ahead.

"I'm sorry if I upset you with what I said."

Leon didn't respond right away. He took a moment to sort through his thoughts before finally asking in a tiny voice, "How could you believe him?" That was, he realized, the part that troubled him the most.

"You weren't there." Stahn sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "He really seemed to mean what he was saying." He turned his gaze back to Leon, anticipating his response.

Leon's eyes finally met Stahn's. He didn't look amused at all. "And just what did he say that was so _enlightening_?" The last word was dripping with venom.

"Come on, Leon," Stahn heaved an exasperated sigh. "Why do you have to be like that?"

"Because I'm sick of you acting like you know what you're talking about!" Leon hadn't intended to yell at Stahn, but being cool headed while discussing the subject at hand was difficult. Stahn, clearly having expected an apology or something, recoiled as though Leon had struck him.

"Maybe if you'd just let me talk instead of cutting me off every time--" he began before, once again, being cut off by a fed up Leon.

"That's because I don't want to talk about this!" Leon's voice broke. "I already told you that."

Stahn put his hand on Leon's shoulder. "It's something you obviously need to talk about," he said gently, his face earnest. For some reason, his soothing tone further infuriated Leon.

"Don't talk to me like that," he warned. "I'm not paying you for counsel!"

"You're not paying me at all," Stahn said, trying to lighten the mood. Leon would have none of it.

"Can't you just get over it?" he said crossly.

Stahn cocked an eyebrow. "Can't you?" he challenged.

"I was doing just fine until you decided that you couldn't leave well enough alone," Leon insisted.

"I got hit with a pillow when I opened the door." Stahn reminded him. "You weren't doing 'just fine'."

Leon said nothing. His throat was constricting and tears welled in his eyes. Why did it always seem like Stahn knew exactly which buttons to push and how hard?

"Leon..." Stahn reached out to console him, but Leon slapped his hand away.

"Just leave me _alone!_" he snapped and in one swift motion, gathered his crutches and jumped up. His only pause was to open the door. Stahn gaped after him, apparently too dumbstruck to follow.

_Why does he do this to me? _Leon thought as he stormed down the hall. He stubbornly swallowed the lump in his throat. _I don't want his sympathy..._

As he continued to stew, he was unconsciously increasing his pace. He didn't even know how it happened, but his feet somehow got tangled up in his crutches and he crashed face first into the floor. The crutches went skidding across the floor, coming to a stop several feet away from Leon. His upper body took the brunt of the fall, so his broken leg was mercifully unharmed. However, he wasn't in the mood to look at the positives.

Leon struggled into a sitting position, looked around and dissolved into tears. He couldn't help it. It wasn't the pain from the fall that made him cry; that was simply the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. It seemed like everything he thought had been fixed was falling apart. He and Stahn had finally settled into a comfortable friendship only to find themselves at odds again. Hugo's demise had simply brought about a new, and bigger, threat. The world was never going to be at peace again. His fencing career was cut short by his injury. That didn't matter now, though; not when Chaltier was gone for good.

After having somewhat successfully tried to push that fact out of his mind and secretly holding out hope that the Swordian would be able to be fixed somehow, he was finally starting to resign himself to it. Leon was seriously beginning to wonder what the point of his survival was if the world was just going to continue its downward spiral.

He suddenly heard running footsteps coming behind him.

"I know you probably don't want to see me right now, but I heard you fall and wanted to make sure you were okay--" Stahn stopped short when he noticed that Leon was crying. "...what is it, Leon?" he lowered his voice, kneeling before his friend, putting his hands on his trembling shoulders. "You can tell me." There was pure compassion in those blue eyes, as though there had been no conflict between him and Leon at all.

Leon didn't pull away and instead buried his face in Stahn's chest, sobbing uncontrollably. He couldn't answer Stahn even if he wanted to. Stahn was patient with him, rubbing his back and whispering reassurances until Leon's sobs subsided.

"You okay now?"

"Yes..."

"Did you hurt yourself when you fell?" Stahn asked. Leon lifted his head and shook it 'no'. His eyes were red rimmed from crying.

"Could you get my crutches for me?" he requested, sounding as worn out as he felt. It had been such an emotionally draining day.

He yelped in surprise as, instead of getting the crutches, Stahn carefully lifted him into his arms and started carrying him bridal style down the hall. Upon realizing the implications of the way he was being carried, Leon's face turned bright red.

"H-hey!" he exclaimed. "I have a broken leg, you know!"

"Don't worry about it. If it's bound well, then this is the safest way to carry you," Stahn insisted.

"Why do you have to carry me at all?"

"It's quicker than having to wait for you to get your crutches and slowly hobble down the hall," Stahn explained. "I'm sure you're going to be going a lot slower from now on."

"Whatever," Leon grumbled. "Why are you so eager to get me back to my room?"

Stahn burst out laughing which made Leon's blush deepen. "Stop thinking that way!" he commanded.

"You're so easy to rile up," Stahn chuckled. "I love it."

"Shut up." Leon tried to scowl, but ended up smiling instead. He felt so much better now just knowing that Stahn truly cared about him.


	10. Moving Forward

"Thank you... I think," Leon said as Stahn gingerly lowered him to the bed. He was praying that the slight flush that still remained in his cheeks had gone unnoticed. After propping himself up against the headboard, he asked, "Can you go get my crutches now, please?"

Instead of complying, Stahn took a seat at the edge of the bed.

"Um..."

"I'll go get them a little later," Stahn promised. "You don't need them right now anyway."

"Actually, I kind of do. We're not _all_ as blessed as you in the mobility department."

"First, we're going to talk," Stahn said firmly. "and you can't storm off without your crutches."

Leon widened his eyes. "Unbelievable," he muttered.

"What?"

"You actually did something clever."

Stahn rolled his eyes before becoming serious. "I want to know what's going on with you."

"Three guesses."

"I'm really sorry." Stahn smiled sadly. "And I mean that. I didn't realize how strongly you felt."

Leon shook his head and exhaled. "Look, it's not entirely your fault," he admitted. "I _was_ really angry with you, but you weren't my only problem. I guess I took all my frustrations out on you and for that, _I _should be the one saying I'm sorry."

"Don't sweat it," Stahn assured him. "With all that's going on, I think we're both a bit more testy than usual... but I think we need to sort this out. After all, you were right earlier."

Leon frowned. "About what?"

"When you said that I didn't understand. Leon, I _want_ to understand, but I can't if you won't let me."

Leon managed to crack a tiny smile. "Didn't I say that I wasn't paying you to deal with my problems?"

Stahn laughed. "Consider it a free service."

"I'm serious. With the Miktran situation, I know you have a lot on your mind... I don't want to burden you."

"It wouldn't be a _burden_." Stahn put his hand over Leon's. "It would be a _relief_. I hate fighting with you."

Frustrated, Leon withdrew his hand. Stahn made it sound so simple, as if a few words were all it would take to fix everything. "What is it, exactly, that you want me to say?"

"Whatever's on your mind."

"I don't know what you think this is, but I'm not just going to deliver some kind of deep, dark confessional on cue." Leon lowered his gaze, his voice softening somewhat. "This isn't something I can just make you understand."

Stahn sighed. "Yeah... I know. It just surprised me, you know, the way you reacted when I told you about Hugo. I guess I expected you to feel the way Rutee did, the way we all did."

"I understand where you're coming from," Leon replied slowly. "It really wasn't fair for me to jump on you earlier. Of course you only know what Hugo told you; that's all you had to go by."

"I just think he really was a good guy underneath it all," Stahn said softly. "Or... at least, I want to."

A bitter smile played across Leon's lips. Stahn's naivete, which had annoyed him when they'd first met, could easily manifest itself into something very admirable. Stahn had a kind heart and he always tried to see the best in everyone. Leon hated to be the one to have to bring that illusion crashing down.

"In his last moment of clarity, he took Rutee to the orphanage," Stahn continued. "That's gotta count for something."

"...if being more interested in power than the well being of your family and even yourself is 'something', then you're right." There was a steel edge to those words and it was sharper than the point of Igtenos' blade. "Stahn, think about it. In his 'moment of clarity', he got rid of his daughter instead of Berselius. Besides, don't you think that in order to be possessed like that, a person has to be somewhat willing? If Clemente had been the Swordian Miktran had chosen to possess, do you think Philia would have committed the same acts as _he_ did?" Leon didn't give Stahn a chance to respond before revealing what he felt was the correct answer. "She wouldn't have. She'd consider what would be best for her friends and the people around her and she would discard the Swordian before she completely succumbed to insanity.

"I want to feel bad and I wish that I could, but it's hard to grieve for someone who had no real feelings of his own." Leon lowered his head, cursing the tears that were pooling in his eyes again. He heaved a long, shaky sigh, wondering when he'd become such an emotional wreck. "I suppose you think that I'm being cold." He smiled ironically. "In your eyes, I'm probably no different than him."

Stahn had been silent up until that point, digesting what Leon was telling him, but as soon as those words were spoken, he shook his head decisively. "I do _not_ see you that way at _all_," he paused and looked directly at Leon before asking, "Do you know why?"

Leon shook his head.

"Because of these." Stahn wiped Leon's tears away and smiled warmly at him. "You _do_ care. I can tell. You wouldn't waste tears over something that didn't mean anything to you."

Leon tried to look away, but Stahn grabbed his chin and forced him to look him in the eyes.

"You don't have to take this on all by yourself." A warm smile spread across his face as he released the boy's chin and instead put his hands on Leon's shoulders. "I'll always be here for you, and I'm sure everyone else feels the same way. We're your friends."

Leon's heart swelled with gratitude. Stahn truly, unconditionally cared for him and he was finally able to admit to himself that that was all he'd ever wanted. "Stahn..." he began softly, peering up at Stahn almost shyly.

"Yeah?"

Leon wanted desperately to thank Stahn, or at least let him know how much he meant to him, but the words wouldn't come out. Anything he tried to formulate in his head sounded so wrong. When it came down to it, he was still afraid to let Stahn know how he felt. He'd never been able to open and honest. As much as he'd despised his life of oppression, it was all he knew and it was nothing compared to this. Freedom was terrifying.

He bit his lower lip, carefully avoiding Stahn's concerned gaze as he tried to get his head back on straight. His face was slightly flushed, and he had a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach that it seemed only Stahn was able to trigger. Finally, he looked back up with a bit of a frown.

"You're such a sap," he grumbled, giving Stahn a gentle shove.

Stahn chuckled and ruffled his friend's hair. "Coming from you, that's a compliment, isn't it?"

Leon tried to scowl, but he just couldn't suppress the smile that was begging to surface. "I guess it kind of is."

The things that Stahn had said may have indeed sounded sappy, or cliche, but Leon could tell that the sentiment behind them was sincere. Nothing else mattered. If there was one thing he'd learned from Hugo, it was that words meant absolutely nothing without something real behind them.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

"Go let them in, Stahn, since no one refused to bring you _your_ only means of transportation," Leon said pointedly.

"Yeah, yeah..." Stahn stood up and walked to the door. "Wait, let me guess, you want me to bring you your crutches while I'm at it."

"Exactly." Leon smirked. "You're getting good at this. Maybe I'll hire you after this is all over."

"Yeah..." Stahn said with a laugh. "Don't take it personally if I don't accept that offer."

He opened the door to reveal Chelsea standing outside of it with a bright smile on her face.

"I hope you guys are hungry," she chirped. "Me and Philia splurged on a big cake, and it's going to take more than the two of us to eat it all."

That certainly got Leon's attention. "Stahn, don't you have my crutches to get?" he prodded in what he liked to think was a subtle manner.

"Yeah, I know." Grumbling in a good natured way, Stahn left the room to fetch the aforementioned crutches.

Chelsea giggled. "Eager for cake, are we?"

Leon felt his face flush a little. "No, that's not it! You couldn't possibly understand what it's like, not being able to get up and walk around whenever you feel like it."

"Oh, of course," Chelsea didn't even bother to conceal her amusement. "Whatever you say, Leon."

"Oh, shut up."

Chelsea scowled, and poked her tongue out at him. "If you're gonna be like that, I'll just give your piece of cake to one of those cats out there. How do you like _that_?"

"...cats don't eat cake."

"Yeah, well..." Chelsea wracked her brain. "That's only because no one offers them any."

Fortunately, Stahn returned then, crutches in hand. He took them over to Leon and held them out with a grin. "There you go. Now there's nothing standing between you and that cake."

Leon accepted the crutches before rolling his eyes. "What is it with you two? So I like cake. It's not as if I have some kind of strange fixation with it."

"I beg to dif--" Stahn saw that Leon was glaring at him, and abruptly changed the subject. "So, Chelsea, where is this cake?"

"Downstairs in the kitchen," Chelsea replied, turning to leave. She looked over her shoulder and beckoned for them to follow her. "Come on!" With that, she dashed off. Clearly, Leon was not the only one eager for cake.

Stahn cast a glance at Leon. "You heard her. Hurry, before they eat it all without us."

"Right." With the aid of his crutches, Leon pulled himself up and hobbled to the door where Stahn was waiting. "Let's go."

The corners of Stahn's mouth turned up into a teasing grin. "Now, remember. _Walk slowly_."

Leon glowered at him, but Stahn just shrugged, his face the perfect picture of wide eyed innocence. "What? It's not my fault you're a klutz."

"You'd be wise to keep your opinions to yourself," Leon advised, "unless you want your cake to become cat food." Cat food? Apparently, Chelsea was getting to him.

With that, he hobbled out of his room and started down the hall at a fairly quick (but noticably cautious) pace, not even sparing Stahn a second glance. Judging by the sound of his footsteps, the blond wasn't far behind.

"Hey, wait up!"

Leon cast a glance over his shoulder and smirked. "I'm not such a klutz after all, hm?"

"Only because you don't want anything to hinder you from getting some cake," Stahn teased him.

"...you know, you _really_ shouldn't pick on me when I have two large, wooden sticks at my disposal."

Stahn took one look at Leon's crutches and threw his hands up in surrender. "Point taken."

Try as he might to sound grumpy, Leon couldn't help but laugh. He'd never felt more at ease around Stahn. It seemed like everything was finally coming together. He didn't have to be alone anymore and, for the first time since losing Chaltier, he knew that he wasn't.

Together, he and Stahn headed downstairs and into the kitchen, ready to enjoy some cake.

-xxx-

The cake was absolutely delicious.

Stahn picked up his last bite with his fork and put it into his mouth, chewing slowly to savour the sweet caramel flavour. He couldn't tease Leon about cake after this, not after he himself had polished off two pieces.

It was just the four of them--him, Leon, Philia and Chelsea--and they'd had a good time. Stahn was so pleased with the improvement in Leon's attitude since their little conversation. It seemed he'd finally started to let his guard down a bit, and it was obvious that he was enjoying himself.

Of everything Stahn had done in his life, he considered this to be one of his greatest accomplishments. To make that boy come around was all he'd wanted since the day they met and the fact that it had finally happened only strengthened his resolve to save this world from Miktran. Leon was free, finally able to be himself after all these years, and Stahn wasn't about to allow Miktran to take that away from him.

Just as he was about to commend the girls on their eye for good cake, he heard someone enter the kitchen. Looking up, he saw Garr standing there wearing a rather somber expression.

"Hey," Stahn greeted him. "Why so serious?"

"The king has requested our presence," he informed them. "He said it was important."

Stahn studied his friend's face for a moment before asking, "Is it bad news?"

"I'm not sure," Garr admitted with a bit of a shrug. "He simply said that he had something important to tell us."

"So, I guess this means you don't have time to stay and have some cake with us?" Chelsea sounded disappointed. Garr only shook his head in response. Philia, meanwhile, turned her attention to Leon.

"I'm sorry we have to go so soon, and leave the kitchen in such a mess..."

"I'm sure the maids can handle it," he assured her before looking at Stahn. "Should I come with you?"

Stahn considered it for a moment before shaking his head 'no'. He could tell that Leon wished he was able to help them, but with his physical condition, that wasn't possible. Besides, if the king's news was indeed bad, there was no need for Leon to share the burden. "You don't have to come. I'm sure you're tired after today." 'Emotionally exhausted' was what Stahn meant, but he'd rather not bring that up in front of everyone. "I'll give you a full report when I get back."

Leon didn't look convinced. "'Do you really mean a 'full report', or do you just mean 'the good news'?"

Stahn knew that he should have expected Leon to clue in. "Well... I..."

"I can't believe this." Leon glared at him. "You're treating me like a child."

Leon wasn't even trying to hide his irritation over Stahn's efforts to protect him. Everything Leon had been through, and still had to cope with, made Stahn a little apprehensive to get him involved. He wasn't sure how much more Leon could take. After everything that had happened, the boy was still in a fragile state. The breakdown he'd suffered earlier was testimony to that. At the same time he knew that, even at the worst of times, Leon was far from frail. This wasn't a fight to 'avenge Leon', like Stahn had viewed the battle with Hugo. This was just as much Leon's fight as it was theirs. Miktran's deeds had destroyed Leon's family and taken away his right to an ordinary life.

"I don't need you to protect me from the world, Stahn. Just because I can't travel with you guys doesn't mean that this doesn't affect me." His brow furrowed and his violet eyes bore into Stahn's blue ones. "I can't agree to wait here if you're going to sugarcoat what he tells you to make it sound like something I want to hear."

Leon's resolve was apparent. It never ceased to amaze Stahn how strong that boy really was. This wasn't the same thing as his facade back in the cave (and it still made Stahn feel sick to his stomach when he thought of that time). Leon was more resilient than Stahn gave him credit for. Finally, Stahn nodded. "Yeah, I'm sorry; I know you're stronger than that." He beamed. "I'll let you in on it, no matter what. After all, you're still part of our team. This is your fight too."

"_Thank you. _It makes me sick when you act like that."

Stahn knew that was just Leon's way of expressing his gratitude, so he simply smiled.

"I do believe the king of Seinegald wishes to see us _promptly,_" Garr reminded Stahn.

Stahn grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry about that."

"Now get going." Leon gestured for them to leave. "It's rude to keep the king waiting."

Stahn groaned. "Don't you start, too."

"But what about the others?" Philia queried.

"They're already at the castle," Garr explained.

"Damn."

Chelsea peered up at Stahn questioningly. "What?"

"Rutee's probably gonna make fun of me for being so late."

"And she'll pick on you even worse if you don't hurry," Leon advised him.

"Yes," Garr agreed. "Now let's go. We've kept the king waiting long enough."

"Right." Stahn nodded. "We'll be back to talk to you a bit later, Leon."

"Yeah, see you then!" Chelsea chirped.

Leon gave them a brief wave in response and with that, the four of them left the mansion and set off for the castle to rejoin the rest of their group.

-xxx-

Leon was disgusted with how he'd completely frozen up earlier. Why couldn't he just be honest with Stahn, with himself? He had to tell him how he felt, even if it was just to get it off his chest. The first time he'd tried to say something was back in the cave. He'd gone in there expecting to die, so there would be no time to regret the revelation. Now, he was glad that he'd lost that opportunity. He doubted that either of them would have been able to look the other in the eye had he said it there. As it was, that day in the cave was something both of them were still haunted by and something neither wished to remember.

He sighed and watched out the window as Stahn and the others walked away from the mansion, becoming smaller and smaller until they were out of sight.


End file.
